The Last of the Forgotten Legacy
by gfdhgfdjzdjzfdjgz798gjd9ug450e
Summary: A young boy rescued by the Jedi is brought to the Temple and begins his training to one day become a proper Jedi himself. His life takes a turn when two mysterious figures guide him to a forgotten planet where a long-lost order of force-wielders stood strong thousands of years ago. The mysterious figures teach him how to interpret and use the Force differently from any Jedi or Sith
1. Chapter 0

**The last of the forgotten legacy**

Chapter 0: The Awakening (33 BBY)

It was a normal day at the Jedi temple on Coruscant. Jedi were conversing with each other, temple guards were walking around in their usual patrol patterns and Master's were taking their Padawans to complete their lessons. Qui-Gon Jinn was walking to his quarters when suddenly he gets hit by a weird feeling. The force flowed through him in a weird way. It was trying to tell him something, so he went to his quarters as fast as he could to meditate about it in peace. 

He entered his small quarters. His quarters were bigger than the Jedi knight quarters but not by a lot. It only had a bed with a small chair by its side and a small drawer, so he could keep his belongings outside of plain sight. He kneeled down to the ground. He began to focus.

 _He woke up in the middle of a field. By the look of the vegetation around him he concluded that he was probably on Dantooine He stood up and took in his surroundings. He saw a small hill to his south, a camp to his east and a burning village ingulfed in fog to the west. He made his way to the village._

 _Qui-Gon made it to the village, but he couldn't go through the fog. He was trying to find a way through until he heard crying coming from inside the village._

" _Who's there?" he yelled._

 _But there was no response and the crying continued. He continued to try and find a way through the fog. He was beginning to give up until a small outline of a human child appeared on the other side of the fog. The crying stopped._

" _Who are you?" Qui-Gon asked with a concerned look on his face. The boy didn't answer or move at all. Then another outline of a man that appeared to be wearing armor creeped up behind the boy, grabbed him and started pulling him away._

 _Before the small child disappeared around the corner he managed to let out a scream "Help me, please!"._

As soon as Qui-Gon came to his senses, he stood up and headed straight to the landing platforms outside the temple. On the way there he encountered Obi-Wan.

"Come with me now!" he demanded in a very serious tone as he walked past him.

" _Well somebody woke up on the wrong side of bed,"_ Obi-Wan thought to himself before he went after Qui-Gon.

"Why are you in such a rush?" Obi-Wan put his hand on Qui-Gon's shoulder and pulled him back to stop him.

"I had a vision, we have to hurry. I'll tell you about it on the ship." They made their way to the ship and soon they were in hyperspace on their way to Dantooine.

"So, what you're telling me is that you think pirates attacked a tribal village in the middle of nowhere on a peaceful planet and kidnapped a child," Obi-Wan said, leaning against a wall with his arms crossed.

"Well that's what my vision told me," Qui-Gon said, sitting in the captain's chair.

"Do you know where the village is?" Obi-Wan asked.

"No, not yet at least. But I'm sure we'll learn the location quickly. Dantooine doesn't have many populated areas. The only really populated areas are the old Jedi enclave and a couple of villages around it," Qui-Gon answered, putting his hand under his chin as if it helped him think.

They landed on Dantooine and not long after that they intercepted a couple of locals talking about a recent raid on a small village. Obi-Wan kindly asks the locals to reveal the location of the village and so they did. They rented a couple of speeders and they sped off into the distance.

By nightfall they made it to the outskirts of the village. They went up to the top of a small hill to scout out the area with their binoculars.

"I don't see anything," Obi-Wan said in a confused tone.

The village was completely destroyed. Only a few houses were still standing but they were burning and bodies littered the what appeared to be a market before the attack.

"I don't see anything either, but I can feel something, someone actually. I can't quite make out who or what it is, but I can sense its emotions, it's frightened. Let's get down to the village quickly it looks clear anyway" said Qui-Gon, before quickly standing up and fast-walking to his speeder.

They carefully entered the what appeared to be more of a tribal village than anything else up close and they slowly made their way through, clearing every standing building and every corner in the process. They made their way through half of the village when all of the sudden they heard very faint crying. Obi-Wan pinpointed the location where the cries were coming from with the help of the force. The crying was coming from a house close to them.

The house looked like it could collapse at any second. They made their way into the house.

"You check the room on the right I'll check the room in front of us and the room on our left." said Qui-Gon, while peeking around the corner to see if the room he was about to check didn't have any immediate danger in it.

Kenobi nodded, and they split up, each searching their designated room. When they both cleared their rooms, they met up back in the small lobby of the house.

"I didn't find anything in my room, Master," Obi-Wan revealed.

"Neither did I," Qui-Gon said.

They made their way into the last room. As soon as they entered they could hear quiet sobbing coming from a small hole in the wall. They quietly made their way towards the source of the sobbing. Obi-Wan peeked through the hole.

"Master come look at this…" he said with a stunned look on his face.

Qui-Gon made his way to him and when he looked around the corner he couldn't believe what he saw. There were 2 adult bodies laying next to each other while a small child was sitting next to them with his head hidden behind his knees.

"I'm guessing those are his…" before Obi-Wan could finish the sentence the child looked at them. He panicked and started backing off into a corner.

"Go away!" the child begged them.

"Don't worry we aren't here to hurt you. What happened here?" asked Obi-Wan as he approached and kneeled down to his level to check if he was hurt.

"I don't know. I was playing in the living room and my parents entered and told me to get into our hiding spot, but before we could close the entrance one of them entered and tried to take them. They refused and they started fighting and then he, he…" before the child could finish the sentence he began having what appeared to be a panic attack. He started tearing up and breathing really fast.

"Calm down little one. We'll get you to safety, but first you have to tell us who attacked you so we can deal with the situation, so something like this doesn't happen again," said Obi-Wan, trying to calm the child.

"I don't know them. It's the first time I saw them but they weren't pirates. The only distinct thing about them was that they were wearing what looked like expensive armor and they were using weapons that fired yellow bolts," said the child, slowly calming himself.

"Yellow bolts?" Obi-Wan asked. Before Qui-Gon could state his theory he sensed lifeforms approaching on speeders.

"Tell me your name little one," Qui-Gon said.

"My name is Cindo," the child answered.

"Okay Cindo listen to me. Me and my friend here are going to meet our visitors, you stay behind us, understood?" said Qui-Gon as he was looking through the window to see who was approaching the village.

"Yes, I'll be right behind you," said Cindo. They made their way to the village market.

They could hear the speeders approaching. It would only be a matter of time before they could spot who was riding them. Qui-Gon jumped up onto one of the few roofs that were still accessible and pulled out his binoculars.

"It's 5 Mandalorian raiders. Or atleast they look like they're Mandalorian," Qui-Gon concluded.

"Well let's prepare an ambush," Obi-Wan responded.

Qui-Gon jumped off the roof and walked by Kenobi and patted him on the shoulder "We won't be able to prepare a good one," he responded with a grin on his face.

"Why?" asked Obi-Wan, confused.

"Because they'll be here in about 10 to 20 seconds. Quickly now Cindo find a good hiding spot." said Qui-Gon. Cindo nodded and quickly ran towards a stack of boxes beside one of the market stalls while Obi-Wan jumped up on the roof.

The men wearing Mandalorian armor dismounted their speeders and slowly strolled towards Qui-Gon. They were wearing blue and white Mandalorian armor and they were each equipped with a jetpack and 2 blasters. Qui-Gon could easily spot their leader as he was the only one wearing a shoulder pauldron and a cape.

"Huh, Jedi. What are you doing here?" their leader asked.

"I was here on a spiritual trip until I encountered this piece of art and I couldn't help but to observe it up close," Qui-Gon responded sarcastically.

"Ah, I see. Well this art piece is off limits so we would be happy if you could move out of the way. We seem to have forgotten putting up the finishing touches," their leader said.

"Ah yes certainly," Qui-Gon moved out of the way and gestured the Mandalorians to go forward.

As soon as the last Mandalorian passed Qui-Gon he tackled him and stomped on his helmet knocking him unconscious. The other Mandalorians turned around and reached for their blasters, but at the same time Obi-Wan dropped down from the roof landing on one of the Mandalorians knocking them out. The remaining Mandalorians opened fire. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan activated their lightsabers and began deflecting bolts. One of the Mandalorians activated their jetpack and started flying around them to get an easier shot. But Qui-Gon masterfully deflected a bolt back into his jetpack, sending him flying straight into a building. There were only 2 Mandalorians left. The leader then pulled out a vibroblade and lunged himself at Obi-Wan which blocked his attempt at surprising him. They then engaged in a duel, as Qui-Gon was too busy deflecting bolts from the other remaining Mandalorian.

"You know the thing I came here for is worth a lot to a certain person. And if you think that I'm gonna let a couple of Jedi destroy my plans you're wrong," the leader said angrily.

"Well come on then, I'm waiting," Obi-Wan responded with a smirk on his face.

The Mandalorian leader then lunged himself at Obi-Wan again, with the same result. But he kept on attacking. Obi-Wan immediately noticed that his opponent had no technique, his plan probably being to get in as many strikes as he could, so he could make Kenobi tired. But it had the opposite effect. Obi-Wan blocked every single one of his attacks with ease and soon the Mandalorian was completely out of breath, unable to even hold the vibroblade properly in his hands. Obi-Wan striked back with a horizontal slash to his body which the Mandalorian blocked, but he stumbled back nearly falling. Kenobi finished the job with kicking the leader in the stomach forcing him to fall to the ground.

"It appears that you have lost," Obi-Wan said with a smile on his face while he was holding his blue lightsaber up to the Mandalorian's helmet.

Obi-Wan put his hands in binders and forced him to sit so he wouldn't be able to get up. Meanwhile Qui-Gon ran off after the last Mandalorian that was trying to escape at that point, or so Kenobi thought. He was guarding the leader and the other 3 men he managed to arrest, when he felt a blaster press up to his head from behind.

"Goodbye, Jedi," said the last Mandalorian as he managed to sneak up on Kenobi. At that point Kenobi accepted his defeat and just closed his eyes.

Before the Mandalorian pulled the trigger the only thing Obi-Wan could hear was Cindo screaming "Noooo!"

And then he heard it. The blaster fired. He opened his eyes thinking that it was all over. But he came to the realization that he was still alive. He looked behind him in confusion and what he saw was incredible. The Mandalorian's hand was up in the air.

"What's happening," he yelled in frustration.

When he finally broke free he aimed for Obi-Wan again but Obi-Wan ignited his lightsaber and cut the Mandalorian's hand off before he could pull the trigger again. The Mandalorian dropped to the ground screaming from the pain that Kenobi inflicted. Kenobi put the last Mandalorian in binders and stood up.

"Thanks for the help, Master," Kenobi said but when he turned around Qui-Gon just rounded the corner and headed straight for Obi-Wan.

"I lost the last one Padawan," he said. Kenobi looked at him with a stare full of confusion.

"Is something wrong Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon asked.

"If you didn't use the force to control the Mandalorian's hand then who did?" Kenobi asked himself.

"Did I miss something?" Qui-Gon said.

Obi-Wan ignored his questions and looked straight at Cindo. Obi-Wan walked towards him and when he got to him he kneeled to his level.

"I can feel the force flowing through you, young one. I have never sensed such power before," said Obi-Wan.

Qui-Gon slowly came up behind him and said "I only sensed someone with more power once. Come with us young one," He helped Cindo up on his feet and they made their way back to the ship.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Untamed Power (33-30 BBY)

Cindo was quite the odd case for the Jedi council. Discovering younglings that late in their life wasn't normal. Cindo was 5 years old when he was discovered so the council debated if they should even let him begin training, seeing as other younglings are brought to the order at the age 2-3 to get used to temple life. But when Qui-Gon started explaining how much power and potential Cindo had the council reluctantly agreed to let him train, but under special conditions. The council assigned him to a clan of younglings which were 1 year younger than him because the 5-year-old younglings would have much more experience and knowledge than him so it would be harder for him to properly learn.

When Cindo was brought to the temple he was put into a clan. But his clan didn't bring him happiness. Instead they made fun of him because they thought that he was weaker than them because he got discovered later and because he was a hybrid between a Human and a Togruta, so they thought he was as a freak. Well he was actually mostly Human since both of his parents were Human, but his grandmother was a Togruta. The only things that made him look different from humans were his abnormal height, slightly longer than average limbs and very sharp teeth. Only 2 other younglings in his clan didn't make fun of him, a Human called Kyle and a Togruta called Ahsoka.

Cindo attended theoretical classes with his clan but when it was time for practical force and combat training he would be separated from his clan and put under special supervision from a Jedi Instructor that was available at the time, because Cindo was old enough to learn how to properly use a weapon and the rest of his clan wasn't.

(31 BBY) "And that will be all for today. If I remember correctly you have the rest of the day off so don't go around causing any trouble, and don't forget about your assignments," said Master Luminara, to the clan.

Cheers could be heard from every corner of the room as the younglings rejoiced about finally finishing classes for the day. Everybody left the classroom as fast as they could, except for Cindo.

Master Luminara came up to him and looked at him with a worried expression on her face "Is there something wrong Cindo," she asked.

Cindo twitched as if he got scared and said "No Master, I was just thinking about something." He stood up, bowed and left the room.

Cindo slowly made his way back to his quarters. He liked to leave class quite a bit after everybody else so he could be alone in his quarters which he shared with 3 other younglins that he didn't talk to very often. He opened the door to his quarters and they were empty. Before entering, Cindo looked around to make sure that nobody followed him and that no other younglings were close. He entered the room and closed the door behind him. Cindo was a person that respected peace and quiet as he had a much easier time focusing on his tasks and assignments, that's why he almost never left the quarters to play with the other younglings. He sat down at his table and started reading through some holo-books that he picked up at the library. Cindo was especially interested in Sith Lords from the Old Republic era. He usually read their biographies, but he was also interested in the artifacts that they collected. He always found it intriguing how the old Sith Lords and even Jedi were interested in artifacts and more powerful than their modern-day counterparts. Not like the Sith existed in the current era anyway.

He was about halfway through a book about Darth Bane and the Rule of Two when he decided to take a break. He laid down in his bed to get some shut-eye. But he couldn't fall asleep as something was bothering him, he just didn't know what. After a while he decided to open a secret compartment in his bed. He pulled out a necklace that his parents gave him for his fifth birthday. He held the necklace tightly as tears started to form in his eyes. He looked down at the necklace and felt a strange energy coming from it. He placed the necklace on the ground and got into a meditative position. He focused on the necklace and soon enough his consciousness was transported to another realm.

 _Cindo opened his eyes and stood up. He didn't know where the force brought him. The ground was made out of water and he was surrounded by fog. He looked around but he didn't see an exit. But then part of the fog started transforming into what appeared to be an image. When the image finalized Cindo couldn't believe what he saw._

" _Mom, Dad?" he asked, tears starting to form in his eyes._

 _But the image didn't move. Cindo closed his eyes and reached out with his hand. Focusing on the image he could feel it transforming into something else. When he reopened his eyes he was looking at a different image. This time he was in it aswell as a baby and the place that the image showed was his old home._

" _Hello?" he asked again, trying to get a response, but again he got nothing. He reached out with the force again, this time without closing his eyes. He could see the image transforming in front of him. The next image was him when he was 2 years old sitting on a hill close to the village he used to live in._

 _He went through some more images mumbling "Why is this necklace showing me these images?". The necklace appeared to contain some sort of gallery filled with images of his past, the only thing he had to remind him of his old life and parents._

Before he could finish viewing the images somebody knocked on the door, knocking Cindo out of his vision. Ahsoka then entered the room.

"Hey Cindo, do you want to eat dinner with me and Shan, you look quite lonely," she said in her cute high-pitched voice which nobody could say no to.

"Yeah, I'll be with you right away, just let me finish tidying my bed," he answered in shock still not fully present in the real world.

"Okay, we'll be waiting outside the refectory," she said before exiting the room.

Cindo quickly put the necklace back into the secret compartment, tidied his bed and then later on joined Ahsoka and Kyle for dinner.

(30 BBY) Cindo was walking back to his quarters as usual. He heard a group of younglings running behind him.

"Here we go again," he sighed, as they ran past him.

"Hey freak try to walk faster, it might save your life one day," the youngling who was mainly the one that bullied him said.

But Cindo kept on slowly walking back to his quarters as usual. Whenever he would get made fun out of he would go to his quarters and either sleep it off or meditate, but he was never able to let all of the anger go. It was slowly building up and it would only be a matter of time before he had to let it out on something or someone. He was about halfway to his quarters when he was intercepted by Kyle and Ahsoka.

"Cindo do you want to play with us in the Room of a Thousand Fountains," said Kyle, all out of breath.

"I don't think I can right now, I need to finish my homework and I also want to read some holo-books, so maybe another time," Cindo said, hoping they would leave him alone.

"Oh come on, you can finish doing those things later. You should relax and have fun. Just because you're older than us doesn't mean that you have to act like an adult," Ahsoka said, rolling her eyes.

"Well I guess actually having fun once in a while wouldn't hurt" Cindo said, scratching the back of his head.

"Great! Come on then, let's go" said Kyle.

Cindo followed them as they ran, playing tag with eachother on the way there.

The three of them entered the Room of a Thousand fountains and made their way to a practice area.

"So what do you guys want to do?" he asked, but when he turned around they weren't there. "Ahsoka? Kyle? Where are you?" he yelled with a confused tone. Then he heard giggling coming from a nearby bush, so he went to check it out.

When he got close Ahsoka and Kyle ran out of the bush with practice swords in their hands. They jumped at him. Cindo jumped over Kyle's swing and made his way to a rack full of practice swords. He picked up 2 and started blocking their attacks. Ahsoka swung at his head, but Cindo managed to block it. He pushed her towards Kyle and they both stumbled to the ground.

They slowly got up and looked at Cindo with grins on their faces "You have to teach us how to do that," Ahsoka demanded.

"Where did you learn those moves in the first place?" asked Kyle, slightly confused.

"I've been receiving basic combat and force training from a couple of Masters in the order for a while now," Cindo answered.

"And why aren't they teaching us how to do that?" said Ahsoka, slightly annoyed that the rest of the clan was being left out of combat training.

"You were too young, but you'll be happy to know that I overheard Master Kenobi talking about that today. You'll begin your training next week," said Cindo, with a smile on his face.

"Really?" Ahsoka and Kyle asked at the same time, jumping from excitement.

"Yes. If you would like a head start I can show you some basics right now so it will be easier when you start training," said Cindo, while getting into his combat stance.

"Yes, let's start right now," Ahsoka demanded more than requested.

Cindo proceeded to show them a couple of basic moves which they repeated multiple times. "I don't think this style fits me," said Ahsoka, a bit annoyed.

"Don't worry they only force you to learn Shii-Cho so you can get familiar with a blade. Later on, you can adjust to whatever style you want," Cindo reassured her.

"Wow Ahsoka you didn't know that? For having a such big head, you really do have a hard time remembering anything," said Kyle mockingly. Ahsoka punched him in the shoulder. "Ow! I was just joking". Ahsoka and Cindo started laughing, Kyle doing the same when he recovered from the punch.

"Well, are you two ready to continue?" Cindo asked after calming down. They nodded and Cindo began going through some more advanced parts of Shii-Cho.

Cindo was on his way back to his quarters after a long day of both learning and teaching. On the way back he got this bad feeling, as if something was going to go terribly wrong, but he dismissed it since he didn't want to ruin his day, which was great thus far. He got to his quarters and opened the door. To his surprise none of his roommates were there yet. The room was also pitch black. He made his way to the light switch. He switched the lights on and when he turned around he jumped back out of surprise. 2 of the bullies were standing in the middle of the room with one coming through the door and closing it.

"What are the three of you doing here?" Cindo asked in bewilderment.

"We're just here to check your room for any contraband items," the main bully stated.

One of the other bullies threw a plate he found at Cindo, but he ducked out of the way at the right time. The plate hit the Cindo's bed and it made a hollow sound.

"Now what do we have here?" said the main bully as he started making his way to Cindo's bed.

Cindo moved in to intercept the bully but he got pushed back by the other 2. The bully found the secret compartment and pulled out Cindo's necklace, the only thing he had left of his family and the only thing that would remind him of who his parents were.

"Give. That. Back" said Cindo angrily.

"Huh? Who would have thought? You actually do have feelings freak. But what would you do if I was to you know, break it," said the bully with an evil grin on his face.

"If you do that, you'll regret it for the rest of your life," Cindo responded, even angrier than before.

"Yeah, like we're scared of you," the bully responded. Then he threw the necklace into the ground as hard as he could and then he proceeded to stomp on it, breaking it. "So what are you gonna do now, freak?" the main bully said, while the other 2 started laughing.

Cindo was broken by the event. The only thing that reminded him of a life long gone, destroyed by some idiotic children which had no respect for anyone. He started letting the anger and grief consume him, but instead of letting these feelings go, he kept them within him. A terrifying dark aura engulfed his hands. The 2 bullies that were holding him back slowly began backing of. The aura around his hands was growing darker and bigger by the second. The ground began to shake subtly. But the main bully wasn't impressed.

"What are you trying to do? Scare us? You're an even bigger loser than I thought. Maybe you should just go back to your paren..." Before he could finish the sentence, he was suspended in the air along with the 2 other bullies gasping for air.

Cindo was holding all three of them in a force choke with only one hand. He began to slowly squeeze his hand together harder and harder. He wanted to make them feel the same pain as he did, he wanted to make them suffer for everything that they have done to him. He felt their life force slowly disappearing, but he wasn't letting go. He slowly looked up and starred the main bully right in the eyes. Something about Cindo's eyes was different. They weren't the usual happy bright blue color, but they were yellow with a slight shade of orange in some places.

"Who's the weak one now?" Cindo asked rhetorically as he began to laugh at their pain.

"Stop this at once!" Mace Windu yelled as he broke down the door and entered the room. But Cindo didn't respond and he had no plan of stopping. He was so close to exacting his revenge. But Windu was having none of it as he force pushed Cindo into a wall knocking him unconscious.

 _Cindo woke up and got into a sitting position. He was feeling dizzy but he didn't know what happened. He seemed to be in a vision again. He slowly picked himself up while trying to not fall back from the sudden dizziness that he was feeling. He looked around and noticed that he was standing in the middle of a dark forest with trees shrouded in darkness and what appeared to be dead flowers on the ground._

 _He started carefully walking in a random direction trying to find a reason as to why he was there._

 _After a while he heard a female whisper that he didn't recognize. "Let go."_

 _He turned around quickly to see who was talking to him, but he didn't see anybody, so he turned back around and continued walking. But then he heard another whisper._

" _Let go." This time it was a different female voice, but he still couldn't recognize it, so he continued walking. While he was walking he was thinking about why the voices were telling him to let go._

" _Cindo." Cindo immediately stopped. The voice sent shivers down his spine. He started looking around to see where the voice was coming from and then he found it._

 _He saw his parents standing deeper in the forest smiling. Cindo filled with excitement started running towards them as soon as he saw them. But he noticed that the forest was getting darker and darker the closer he got to them. He stopped a couple of meters in front of them._

" _We missed you son," his father said, smiling._

" _I missed you too. It's been very hard without you," Cindo responded._

" _We know son. But we can be reunited again." His mother gestured him to come to her so she could hug him._

 _He started walking towards them but then he felt a presence in the Force. He turned around only to see cloaked figure._

" _You would be wise to not completely fall to the dark side," the figure said. They had a distorted voice as if they were forcing themselves into his vision to talk to him._

" _What are you talking about?" Cindo asked, confused._

" _The dark side has already taken control of your body but you have the power to resist it. This is your last chance to save yourself," the figure stated._

" _How do I do that?"_

" _Let go. Trust the Force," the figure answered before slowly disappearing into nothingness._

" _Wait!" he yelled but the figure already disappeared. He sighed and turned back around to his parents who were still waiting for him to join them._

" _Come on son. We've been waiting for a long time to be with you again," his father said._

 _Cindo took a few steps forward but then he felt something, as if the Force was sending him a warning._

" _Trust in the Force.." he mumbled to himself before stopping, extending his hand towards his parents and focusing._

 _The only things he could sense was pure evil, hatred and grief. He finally realized what the figure was trying to tell him._

" _Mom, dad, I'm sorry but I can't join you," he said looking at the ground, his eyes tearing up._

" _Don't worry, son. Everything will be alright," his mother said reassuringly stretching out her arm so Cindo could hold it. "You're so close. We can finally be together again." she continued._

 _Cindo looked up and wiped away his tears. "Sorry, but I have to let go."_

" _Don't you dare," they both said at once as they started moving towards him._

 _CIndo took a step back and Force pushed them back into the darkness of the forest. He fell to his knees and started crying. But an earthquake interrupted his crying as he jumped on his feet. The forest was falling apart. The ground was breaking apart, falling into oblivion. He noticed a source of light and ran straight towards it. It a gate made out of pure light. He jumped through it._

 _He woke up and realized that he was lying in the same spot as when he first woke up in the vision but the forest was different. The trees and flowers were normal and he heard bird chirping all around him. He noticed that the cloaked figure was there again so he got up to talk to them again._

" _Who are you? And why did you help me?" he asked, demanding answers._

" _You will learn in due time. The only thing that matters is that you completed the first step of your journey. Now rest," the cloaked figure said as they walked up to him and put a finger on his forehead knocking him out._


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Jedi Training (30-28 BBY)

(30 BBY) Cindo was lying in bed still unconscious from being force pushed into a wall fifteen hours ago, with two Temple guards standing on each side of the bed. As soon as Cindo woke up one of the guards noticed, aiming their lightsaber pikes at his head.

"Don't move!" the guard on the left stated.

The other one turned away to say something into his commlink but turned back right after he finished talking.

"What's happening? Why am I tied to the bed?" Cindo asked nervously.

"It's for your own good," the guard to his right answered.

Cindo sighed and accepted the fact that the guards probably won't reveal more, so he just decided to lean back and wait until something happens.

After a while the door opened and Mace Windu entered the room.

"Thank you for your time men. You may return to your other duties," said Windu, approaching the bed.

"Of course, Master Windu," said the guard to the left. The guards then respectfully bowed and left the room.

Cindo proceeded to ask the same questions he asked the guards "Master, why am I tied down?".

Mace slowly approached the bed and when he was next to it he gently grabbed his face to inspect him closer. "Interesting…" he said with an astonished look on his face. He let go off Cindo and began to pace around his bed.

"If I may ask Master, what's so interesting?" Cindo asked, confused.

"You," Windu answered. He then turned around and noticed that he made the young boy even more confused. "Before I explain let me get you out of those restraints," said Windu before carefully removing his restraints.

Cindo then got up into a sitting position and looked at him in bewilderment. "Do you recall the events that lead up to this?" Windu asked Cindo with a raised brow.

"Well the last thing I remember is one of the younglings destroying the necklace that my parents gave me," said Cindo as he clenched his fist, but he quickly overcame his anger and calmed down.

"Well, let me finish the story for you," said Windu as he sat down next to him. As Windu was telling Cindo what happened, he was looking more and more shocked about the things that he did when he let himself be consumed by the dark side.

"...You weren't loosening your grip, you were just standing there, force choking all three of them while laughing. I looked you in the eyes and they were the same color as those of a Sith, so I decided to stop before you killed them," Windu explained coldly.

"But the truly astonishing thing is that it appears that you fought the dark side and regained control of your body and feelings. Not even one of the most powerful Jedi of all time, Revan, wasn't able to resist the dark side by himself. It corrupted him and his apprentice and they brought war to the Galaxy which nearly completely destroyed The Republic," Windu explained. "And so, it made me think. You have great potential, but you clearly need the proper guidance to realize it. You stay here and recover, I will go and discuss this with the Council. I will send someone for you in the morning," said Windu, before slowly getting up and walking towards the door.

Cindo laid back down and asked "What happened with the younglings?". Mace stopped and turned around "They don't remember anything, I don't know how or why. But this is the only reason that we were having this conversation," he said coldly as he continued walking towards the door. When Windu left the room, Cindo relaxed and gradually fell asleep.

The next morning Cindo got woken up by a kid barging into his room. "Get up, the Council sent me to tell you that they wish to speak to you," said the kid.

"And who are you?" Cindo asked out of curiosity, as he began stretching and yawning.

"The name's Anakin, I'm Obi-Wan Kenobi's Padawan," he said, before making his way to the exit. He stopped by the door and said "You really don't want to keep the council waiting, I know from experience," with a smirk on his face. He gave Cindo a two-fingered salute before leaving the room.

" _Well, he's a special one,"_ Cindo thought, as he got up and made his way towards the door. He stepped out into the expansive halls of the Jedi Temple and headed straight to the High Council Chamber.

As he was walking through the youngling quarters he heard a familiar voice coming from behind. "Cindo where are you going?" Cindo turned around and saw Ahsoka standing in the hallway.

"Aren't you supposed to be in class right now?" Cindo asked her, looking surprised.

"No. Me and Kyle were able to finish faster since we knew all the basics, thanks to you," she said with smile.

"So where's Kyle?" Cindo asked while moving his head around to see if Kyle was close by.

"He went to our usual play spot. I'm actually here because I wanted to ask you if you would join us," she stated.

"As much as I would love to have fun right now, I really can't, the council wants to talk to me," he said, visibly shaking.

"You look scared. Did you do something wrong?" she asked, curiously.

Cindo looked down and started scratching the back of his head with one hand. "Umm no… At least I don't think so," he lied, before looking back up at Ahsoka, who seemed to be getting more and more impatient.

"Can't it wait? We won't have much free time from now on since we have force and combat training," she pleaded while becoming sadder with every passing moment.

"I don't think it would be a good idea to ignore a command from the great Council itself," Cindo said, with a smirk developing on his face. Ahsoka's mood appeared to improve after his remark.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Will you finish in time so we can still play for a little bit?" she asked with her hands put together as if she was begging.

"It probably… _ahem…_ hopefully won't take long" Cindo responded with a smile.

"Okay, I'll see you later then," she said before running off.

Cindo sighed, to help him calm his nerves, and turned around, making his way to the High Council Chamber.

* * *

Only a few of the Masters were in the chamber as the others had assignments which they needed to carry out. Of the Masters that were present there were Mace Windu, Yoda and Kit Fisto.

Cindo made his way into the chamber and positioned himself in the middle of the room. "You wanted to see me Masters?" he asked, his voice shaking.

"Welcome Cindo," said Master Fisto, smiling.

"Your potential, come to our attention it has. Very descriptive of events, Master Windu was," said Yoda as he was standing in front of his chair leaning on his cane.

"None of the Jedi in our recorded history ever came back from the dark side by themselves. You truly achieved something remarkable. But it is still too early for us to say that you won't turn back again, so we are going to be taking some safety precautions," said Master Windu.

Cindo got scared but that fear disappeared when he looked at Master Fisto, noticing that he was still smiling so the thing Master Windu said couldn't mean anything bad, or so he hoped.

"We have decided that a child as gifted and as dangerous as you should receive special training. So we concluded that we would take you away from your clan and put you into the care of Battlemaster Cin Drallig, who will be your combat instructor and the other instructors which will provide the theoretical and Force oriented parts of your training," said Windu, his hands clasped in front of his face.

"Will I be able to talk to my friends from the clan?" said Cindo, with obvious concern in his voice.

"Well If you consider them as friends, I don't know why you shouldn't be able to talk and play with them in your free time," said Master Fisto, still harboring that signature smile of his.

"Do you have any other concerns young one?" asked Master Windu.

"No Master," Cindo answered, determined to make his masters proud.

"Good. Then you can go to your new quarters. Your belongings have already been moved there. Oh, and also your training begins tomorrow," Windu declared, as emotionless as always.

Cindo's face lit up with excitement. He was going to be getting his own room, something that he didn't think he would get until he became a knight.

"Thank you, Masters. I won't disappoint you," Cindo said, filled with excitement.

"You may go now young one. And enjoy your new quarters," Master Fisto stated. Cindo then left the room as quickly as he could to check out his new living quarters.

As soon as Cindo entered his new quarters a big smile appeared on his face. His new room was a little bit smaller than the old one, but then again, he had to share his old room with 3 other younglings. All of his belongings were laid out on the table. He reorganized his borrowed holo-books and put all the extra equipment he had in the drawers. He then went back to the table and noticed that the shattered necklace was on the table. He grabbed it and sat down on his meditation seat. He was looking at it for a while, tears forming in his eyes, but he quickly swept them away, before standing up and leaving his room, locking the door behind him. He made his way straight to the terrace as quickly as he could. He got there and leaned on one of the railings taking in the gorgeous view of Coruscant which the Temple terrace provided. He looked down at the necklace and thought _"Goodbye, mom and dad."_ He then threw the necklace over the railing and started making his way back to his quarters while wiping tears away from his eyes on the way.

"Cindo wait up" a voice said as Cindo wanted to open the door to his quarters.

"Hey, Kyle. What is it?" Cindo said as he wiped away the last few tears and then turned around to face Kyle.

"Is something wrong?" said Kyle, with a concerned expression.

"No don't worry about it. I just had to deal with something," said Cindo, quickly forcing a small grin so Kyle wouldn't think that anything was wrong.

"Oh, okay. Anyway, I was searching for you, so we could go eat lunch together, but the other guys that you shared your quarters with said that they moved you. Luckily master Master Fisto was outside and he told me where your new room was," Kyle told Cindo.

"Let's go eat then. We can go play after lunch if you guys don't have anything else to do," Cindo declared.

* * *

"Show me what you have learned thus far," Battlemaster Drallig demanded, while pacing around back and forth in one of the training rooms in the Temple, with his hands behind his back.

"Yes, Master," said Cindo, getting into his combat stance with a practice sword in his hand. He started swinging his sword using Form I or Shii-Cho.

Master Drallig closely inspected his every move before saying "You are doing better than any other youngling your age would, I am impressed. But there is still a lot you can work on. Let me show you." Master Drallig walked up to Cindo and said "Get into the basic combat stance again."

Cindo did as his Master asked and got into the basic Form I combat stance. Master Drallig gently grabbed his leg and slowly pulled it back by a little bit "This should give you better balance," he said, moving onto his hands "Your hands should be a bit higher. It will make it so you can block your enemy's attacks faster."

He then moved to the rack to get his own practice sword. He positioned himself next to Cindo. "Repeat every move after me," he said with a serious expression. He then started swinging his sword gracefully through the air while Cindo was repeating his every move, trying to match his elegancy.

"Try not to focus on how good your swings look, the only thing that's important is that you're doing it correctly. Mastery comes with time and practice," Master Drallig said while continuing to swing his sword around with ease.

After hours upon hours of practicing the same form Master Drallig decided that it was enough for their first day. "We will keep practicing Form I for the entirety of the week or maybe even month. You have to learn the basics of every fighting style if you wish to be a successful duelist. Then we will move on to Form II and so on until we get through all of them. And only after you tried and practiced all of them shall you decide which form or maybe even which combination of forms suit you best," he said, not even looking a bit tired from all the practice.

The same couldn't be said for Cindo though. He was halfway asleep during the last few rehearsals, barely managing to hold his practice sword high enough.

"Now get some sleep. You have a lot of classes tomorrow. Everything from history, mathematics to combat training and force training," said Master Drallig while they were walking down the halls of the temple. When they got to Cindo's room Cindo bowed and wished his mentor a good night's sleep. He then entered the room and went straight to his bed, lying down and falling asleep almost instantly.

* * *

"I am astonished by your interest in these ancient Jedi and artifacts," said Jocasta Nu with a smile on her face. "Most of the time these generations really aren't interested in anything but fighting and learning force abilities," she said with an exasperated tone. She then stood up and said "I will see if I can grant you clearance for the more in depth holo-books in the meantime you should go to your next class," before walking away.

Cindo packed his bag with the holo-books he borrowed and made his way out of the library. He had to get to his next class, which was Force usage. He dropped of the bag in his room and headed for the training section of the temple.

He entered a dark circular room with a figure standing by the window, which was the only source of light in the entire room.

"Welcome, young Cindo. I am Master Plo Koon, I will be teaching you about the ways of the Force," said Master Plo as he slowly turned around.

Cindo bowed and said "I'm honored, Master."

Master Plo made his way to the middle of the room where Cindo was standing and positioned himself in front of him with his hands behind his back. "Let us begin. So tell me Cindo. What do you know about the Force?" he said.

Cindo didn't know what to think about Master Plo. He had a menacing look and a very deep voice that probably scared people when they first saw him, but he was also very calm and gave off a friendly vibe.

"The Force is part of every living being and it binds the universe together. It also strives for balance between the light and dark," Cindo said quietly, hoping he said nothing wrong as he was still a bit afraid of his teacher.

"That is correct. I see that you have been paying attention in your classes," Master Plo said, still in the same stance as before. "And what can we use the force for?" he asked.

"I wouldn't know the answer to that Master," Cindo said, looking at the ground shamefully.

"Well let me explain this in a way you will understand. The Force can be used for many things, including protection, persuasion, wisdom, the manipulation of matter and the performance of great physical feats," Master Plo explained, using his hands to perform gestures to emphasize his points.

"But before any one of these things can be achieved, you must have two prerequisites. You must be Force-sensitive, which you are and you have to also strengthen your bond with the Force. You have talent but without a strong connection with the Force, you won't be able to use any of the powers that it provides. That's why I'm here. To make your connection with the Force stronger and to teach you advanced Force abilities after we strengthen your bond with it." Cindo nodded as Master Plo continued "But there is also a risk. The Dark side of the Force will always try to tempt you. Anger, sadness, passion, grief. All of these things lead to the Dark side. So now that I said everything I wanted to we can start with your first lesson."

Master Plo put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a small rock which he then laid on the ground. "Your first lesson will be to lift this rock." he said, pointing at it. "Now take a step back, clear your minds and focus. Envision yourself lifting the rock," he said, before moving out of the way and crossing his hands.

Cindo took a step back, closed his eyes and extended his left hand. Soon the rock began to shake and after a while, slowly began to float higher and higher in the air.

"Very good, young one. Now sit down and try to lift the rock without using your hands," said Master Plo.

Cindo obliged, dropping the rock and getting into his meditative position.

"The process will be the same as before but it will be much harder to do," Master Plo explained gesturing with his hands.

Cindo exhaled, closed his eyes and began to focus. But nothing was happening. The rock was still and he became angrier and angrier. "I can't do it," he said after a while, before sighing, opening his eyes and looking at Master Plo.

"Yes, you can. You will achieve nothing if you doubt in your abilities and in the Force. Clear your mind of any doubt and remember: You're one with the Force and the Force is one with you," Master Plo said in a reassuring tone.

"Yes, Master" Cindo responded before closing his eyes and attempting to complete his task once again.

" _Focus, focus. I'm one with the Force and the Force is one with me,"_ he thought to himself.

The rock began to hover once again as a white aura started form around Cindo. " _Interesting,"_ Master Plo thought when he noticed the aura. Cindo gently laid the rock back on the ground before opening his eyes and standing up with a satisfied smile on his face.

"Most impressive," said Master Plo. "This will be all for today. You may go." Cindo bowed and left the room.

* * *

(29 BBY) Cindo was lying in bed, exhausted from his combat training with Master Drallig the previous day. They were almost finished with going through all of the combat forms, so it was time for Cindo to start thinking about which combat style he was going to adopt as his main one.

It was quite hard for him to decide which form or combination of forms he would use since he liked to use 2 sabers at once; one in a normal grip and the other in a reverse grip, but he had no problem fighting with only one saber so he settled on a combination of Soresu for blocking blasters, Shien with the speed and aggression of Ataru for duels with other lightsaber or melee weapons users and he also wanted to incorporate a part of Niman which focused on using Force powers to impower attacks. It would take him a while to learn how to use all of these forms in unison seeing as he wanted to combine parts of four vastly different forms into one. He concluded that he was going to learn each one separately and then later combining them into a hopefully useful style of combat.

He got up from bed and walked to the table where his clothes were. He quickly got dressed and then checked his chronometer. It was almost midday but he wasn't worried since he didn't have any classes on that day, so he decided to go and check up on Ahsoka and Kyle. He hadn't seen them in a month since his schedule was so full that when he returned to his room after classes he instantly fell asleep most of the time.

He went through the door of his room, locking it behind him. Then he turned to the right and started making his way towards the youngling living quarters where Ahsoka and Kyle resided.

He arrived at their room but when he tried to open the door it was locked. He knocked but he got no response. " _Huh, they must be in a class then,"_ he thought to himself before turning around and making his way back to his room.

When he turned the corner before the Archives he bumped into someone, knocking them both to the ground. He looked up only to see that it was the Rodian girl that was a part of the same clan that he used to be in. He hastily got up to his feet and helped the girl.

"Hey, Lara. I'm sorry for knocking you down, didn't see you," he apologized as she got up on her feet.

"Yeah, no problem. And also the name's Lira not Lara," she said angrily with her arms crossed in disapproval of him not remembering her name even though they were in the same clan for years.

"Oh… Sorry about that. I'm not good with names. Anyway, did you see Ahsoka and Kyle today?" he asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Yes, I saw them heading out of their room and asked them where they were going, but the only answer they gave me was that they were going to their usual spot," she answered, visibly annoyed at the fact that they were keeping secrets from her.

"Thanks for the help. I'll see you around," Cindo said, before quickly walking away.

He knew exactly where to go. Their usual spot was in the Room of a Thousand Fountains, more specifically in a clearing on the south side of the room. The clearing had a practice sword rack, a couple of meditation mats and a river stream nearby.

Before entering the room he encountered Master Yoda, who was just leaving. "Good day, Master," he greeted while respectfully bowing.

"Hello, young Cindo. A beautiful day, it is. Agree, would you not, hmm?" he asked as he stopped and leaned on his cane.

"It's a very nice day indeed, Master. Have you seen Ahsoka and Kyle by any chance?" he asked back.

"Yes, I have. Somewhere within the room, they are. But before you go a question I want to ask. Your training, going well it is?" he asked seriously.

"Yes, Master," Cindo answered, trying to end the subject as quickly as he could, so he could get to his friends as soon as possible.

"Good to hear, that is," he stated, slowly rocking back and forth.

"May I go now? I don't want to keep my friends waiting, " Cindo expressed.

"Go, you may. A nice day, I hope you will continue having," Yoda said, looking at Cindo happily.

Cindo nodded. "Likewise, Master." He bowed and started walking towards where Ahsoka and Kyle were located.

Cindo could hear some fighting in the distance so he carefully made his way towards the source. He hid behind a small bush and peeked and saw Ahsoka and Kyle dueling with practice swords. He stealthily made his way to a tree and leaned on it, observing the duel.

Ahsoka was being very aggressive as always. She was always as close to Kyle as possible, swinging at him as fast as she could. But Kyle blocked or evaded every single strike, since it appeared that he has adopted Makashi as his main combat form. Ahsoka tried to jump over him to surprise him, but sent out a very week force push, to push her away and give himself time to turn around and block her strike. She jumped back at him as soon as she recovered but he moved out of the way, causing her to lose her balance and falling to the ground, but she quickly got up on her feet with the help of the Force. Kyle then took the offensive and started swinging at her with short and precise jabs. They got into a blade lock but Kyle overpowered her since he was stronger. He twisted his practice sword around her hand, disarming her.

"Don't worry you'll beat me one day, Soka," Kyle said, handing Ahsoka her practice sword.

Cindo started clapping and they both turned around surprised.

"Hi, Cindo. Haven't seen you in a while. What brings you here?" Kyle asked, happy to finally see Cindo again.

"Well, I'm free today after two months of constant classes and practice so I decided to spend it with my friends," he answered, with a grin. "So what have you two been up to?" he continued.

Kyle smirked before saying "Well, I've been constantly beating Ahsoka in duels and everything else as a matter of fact."

Ahsoka came up to him and punched him in the shoulder. Kyle cried in pain, and Ahsoka turned to Cindo satisfied from the result of her punch. "What he meant to say was that nothing interesting has been happening for a while now. Just classes and practice, like you."

Cindo turned and headed towards the weapons rack. "You know, since we haven't seen each other in a while and if I remember correctly, I beat you both at once, I think we should have a rematch," Cindo said as he grabbed two practice swords.

"You think you can still beat both of us at the same time?" Ahsoka said angrily with her arms crossed. She didn't like being underestimated.

"Who knows? But I want to duel each of you separately first to see how you evolved," Cindo said, before starting to warm up by swinging around his swords.

Ahoka picked up her sword and walked up to Cindo. "I'll go first".

"If you wish," Cindo responded as he got into position, turning his body slightly to the right, holding his left sword in a normal grip and his right sword in a reverse grip. Ahsoka followed suite, getting into the standard Djem So position.

"Your move," Cindo said, with a serious expression on his face.

Ahsoka lunged at Cindo as fast as she could swinging horizontally from the right to the left. Cindo deflected her attack with his left sword, knocking her hand up and putting his reverse grip sword up to her neck, ending the duel almost immediately.

"Oh, you have to be kidding me," she expressed loudly while Kyle laughed at how easily she got beaten.

"That was pretty pathetic, even for you. Perhaps you should think before you strike," Cindo said with a smirk.

"You didn't just say that," she said, getting angrier by the second. As much of a nice person as Ahsoka was she was incredibly stubborn and could be easily irritated. She would usually ignore other people's advice and keep doing her own thing, either making it work or failing hard.

"Calm down. I didn't mean to offend you," Cindo reassured her.

"Just stop talking. Let's do it again," she said getting back into her fighting stance.

She lunged at him again, this time swinging in the opposite direction but Cindo blocked it with is right sword, instantly moving to swing at her body, but this time she jumps back evading the attack. Cindo then went on the offensive, swinging his left saber horizontally. Ahsoka quickly deflected to attack, but in the meantime Cindo attempted to sweep her off her feet, but she evaded it by taking a step back. But that caused her to lose balance so she fell back even further to recover. But Cindo kept up the pressure by instantly propelling himself into the air with the help of the Force. As he was coming down he swung as hard as he could making Ahsoka lose her blade and balance. After the swing he twirled and put his right sword up to her neck.

" _I'm getting a hang of this multiple Form combat style surprisingly quickly,"_ he said to himself proudly, as he helped Ahsoka get up on her feet.

When Ahsoka stood up she took a moment to recover and shake her head. "How did you do that?" she asked surprised.

"Well it's part of my fighting style. I incorporated multiple Forms into one style that should work in theory. This was my first time using it," he said looking down at his swords.

"I don't mean that. I mean how did you manage to swing with such power?" she asked, still confused.

He shrugged and said, "I guess I'm gifted."

"You're becoming cockier by the day," she said with an irritated tone.

"It's just the way I am," he responded, before turning around to Kyle and saying, "So do you want to try now?"

Kyle still being shocked from the power that Cindo was able to produce, shook his head, closed his mouth and turned towards him. "No, thank you. But if I remember correctly you said that you wanted to fight both of us at once again, so we can do that if you want to."

"Yeah, sure. I actually want a challenge," he said, as he stretched his arms.

Ahsoka rolled her eyes and got into her combat position again with Kyle following soon after. Cindo did the same and beckoned them to attack. Ahsoka went on the offensive first as usual, swinging at his legs this time, but he parried her and tried to swing his other sword at her, but he got blocked by Kyle. They exchanged a couple of blows, but Cindo managed to evade one of them by sidestepping to the left. This caused Kyle to lose balance and he ran past Cindo, almost falling to the ground. Then Cindo focused on Ahsoka. She was still trying to make him tired by swinging her sword at him as fast as she could but to no avail. Cindo kept blocking and parrying every single one of her attacks. After Kyle recovered from almost falling he turned around and jumped at Cindo as quickly as he could. But Cindo expertly moved out of the way again, causing Kyle to jump into Ahsoka, making them both lose balance and fall to the ground. Kyle quickly got up and turned around to try and attack Cindo again, but Cindo Force pushed him away and went to disarm Ahsoka. He kicked away her practice sword and pointed one of his swords towards her which meant that she was out of the duel. Then Cindo sensed danger and turned around only to meet Kyle in a blade lock. He made Kyle think that he was the one winning the blade lock. But when Kyle got close to being in a position where he could remove one of Cindo's practice blades, Cindo easily pushed his blade away with his left blade and swept him off his feet.

"Better luck next time," he said with a smirk on his face, as he helped Kyle get up.

"How are you still able to beat us so easily?" asked Ahsoka, irritated. She got up, dusted off her clothes and walked up to Cindo and Kyle.

"I guess I'm just that good," Cindo said proudly with his hands on his hips.

Kyle sighed and shook his head in amusement. Then Cindo turned his attention to Ahsoka, but she raised her arm before he could say anything. "I don't want to hear it." She really wasn't good at taking loses.

"Oh well, look at the time. They're gonna start serving launch soon. Should we go?" Kyle asked, trying to improve the mood.

"Sure," they both answered at almost exactly the same time.

* * *

They were walking out of the room, but before Cindo exited he thought he heard something so he stopped and turned around.

But there was nothing. The only thing he could see were leaves blowing in the wind. So he turned around and took a step forward.

"Flo… there… bal…"

He turned around again. But there was still nothing, so he thought that the wind was playing games with him. But he felt something in the Force, he just couldn't figure out what it was, so he decided to quickly clear his mind and focus. He closed his eyes and put his hands together, focusing on the disturbance that he felt.

"Flow… all... there is… bal…"

He could hear very faint but familiar whispering. But he couldn't sense anything that could be physically tied to this whispering. No living form that was present was producing it. Then the presence started to become less and less noticeable before vanishing completely. He opened his eyes and looked around one more time before deciding to leave the room and catch up to Ahsoka and Kyle.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: The Tournament (27 BBY)

Cindo was enjoying his day, walking around the Temple. He was turned the corner and saw a group of younglings that were slightly older than him being very excited about something.

" _Wonder what that's all about?"_

But he decided not to bother them about it. He got to his room, but before he could open it he could hear somebody yelling his name. He turned around and saw Ahsoka and Kyle running towards him.

"What are you guys so excited about?" he asked in bewilderment.

"The tournament of course," Ahsoka answered excitedly.

Cindo looked at them confused, not knowing what they were talking about.

Ahsoka crossed her arms and said, "Are you really that oblivious to everything that's going on around you?"

"Well, I don't really interact with anybody except for my instructors and you two," he responded shyly.

"This could be a great opportunity to get your name out there and make some new friends on the way then," Kyle said, after recovering from all the running that him and Ahsoka were doing on that day.

"So, what's this tournament about anyway?" he asked.

"It's a dueling tournament for younglings. There are no prices. It's mostly just for fun and bragging rights and you know how much I like to brag," Ahsoka said with a smirk.

"Good to know you're confident, you'll need it seeing as neither of you have beaten me in a duel yet," he teased with a small smile on his face even though the last time they sparred was months ago and Cindo hasn't practiced since thinking that he didn't need it.

"We'll beat you one day," said Kyle with a determined look. Ahsoka nodded.

"I guess we'll see then. Where do I sign up?" Cindo asked eagerly.

"We already took care of that for you. The tournament takes place next Saturday. The first stages are going to be taking place in the training rooms and the last stage is going to take place on Tython," Kyle explained.

Cindo visibly flinched from excitement. Of course, being a sucker for history, he couldn't contain his excitement when he found out that he would be going to Tython if he got past the first stage.

"I'll see you on tournament day then," Cindo said as he opened the door to his quarters.

"Wait. The tournament is in eleven days. Are you really going to ignore us until then?," Ahsoka said, confused.

"No, of course not. I just wouldn't want to show you all of my secret strategies, now would I?" he asked rhetorically, grinning at them with his arms crossed.

"So, do you want to play tag with us for a bit if you don't have anything to do?" Kyle asked excitedly.

"Sorry but I don't feel like playing now. I've been wanting to read some history books for a while now," Cindo said.

Kyle excitement visibly dropped. "Oh… Well see you later for dinner?"

Cindo nodded. "Yeah, I'll see you there." He turned and went into his room, closing the door behind him.

He felt tired, so he decided to nap for an hour or two. He lyed down but he couldn't fall asleep because something was bothering him the entire time. He was sensing something calling him through the Force. So he decided that the best course of action would be to meditate. He got up and walked to his meditation mat. He sat down with his legs crossed, closed his eyes and focused.

 _He opened his eyes and noticed that he was in a familiar forest. It was the same forest in which the hooded figure helped him overcome the dark side._

 _He stood up and yelled "Hello? Is anybody there?"_

 _Then a gust of wind swept through the forest._

" _Focus."_

 _He identified the whisper as being the voice of the hooded figure he met before. Then the wind blew through the forest again._

" _Sense."_

 _This time it was the other voice. The one he heard many times but never saw._

 _Cindo did as he was told. He extended his arm and focused. He sensed a familiar presence in the distance. It was the same presence he felt when he was leaving the Room of a Thousand Fountains after sparring with Ahsoka and Kyle, so he decided to run towards it._

 _A couple of minutes later he arrived at a weird structure. It was a metallic prism with stairs leading up to the top of it on each side. Cindo scaled the stairs. When he got to the top he spotted a familiar hooded figure standing in the middle._

" _Why do I keep hearing and seeing you? Who are you who is the other voice?" Cindo asked aggressively._

" _Those things aren't important. The thing that's important is that you're clearly not ready," the figure responded calmly._

" _Not ready? Not ready for what?" Cindo was getting really tired of getting no answers from the figure._

" _You will learn in due time. But for now it's time for your next lesson."_

" _I'm tired of this. I want answers." Cindo started running towards the figure but as soon as he got close the figure just vanished into the floor._

" _Calm down. We are only here to help you and prepare you for what's to come," the figure reassured Cindo._

" _Wait, we? Where is the other person?"_

 _As soon as Cindo asked that question he heard the sound of somebody walking up the stairs. He turned and saw another hooded figure but at least he clearly see that it was a Togruta. He turned around once again to talk to the other figure but it was gone._

" _Are you ready for your lesson?" the Togruta asked. Cindo identified that she had what people used to call an Imperial accent in the Old Republic era. The accent was still common but it didn't have a specific name._

" _Yes. So, what's it about?"_

 _The figure didn't answer, instead it threw two practice swords towards him._

 _He picked them up and got into his combat stance. The figure summoned a wooden staff with the Force._

 _He ran and striked towards the figure, but it sidestepped and hit him on the right side of his body._

" _Slow."_

 _He lunged at her again, this time using his reverse grip sword to swing at her. But she moved a step back and grabbed his arm after he swung past her, grabbing and twisting it. Cindo cried in pain and she kicked him away._

" _Undisciplined."_

 _The figure turned away and leaned on her staff looking out into the forest. Cindo seeing it as the perfect opportunity to strike, quietly made his way behind her and attempted to jab at her. But she turned around incredibly fast knocking his sword out of his hand with her staff. He then attempted to swing at her with his other sword but she knocked it out of his hands as well. She then pushed him away with the Force._

" _Weak."_

 _Cindo tried to recover, but as soon as he lifted his head the figure shifted from her location straight to Cindo in no time at all and put her staff to his head pushing it back down to the floor._

" _Arrogant."_

 _The figure then threw the staff away and helped Force lifted Cindo back on his feet._

" _What's the purpose of this lesson?" Cindo asked, still hurt from the sparring session if you can even call it that._

" _A lesson in humility," a voice behind him said._

 _The Togruta in front of him slowly disappeared into nothingness and he turned around only to see the other figure again._

" _How was this supposed to teach me anything?" Cindo asked, confused._

" _This lesson proved that your arrogance will get you nowhere. You aren't the best and you never will be with your attitude. The way to becoming a great Force-user is humility, compassion and hard work, not arrogance and selfishness. If you do not learn these things you are destined to fail. Do you understand?" the figure explained._

 _Cindo came to the realization that what the figure is saying is completely true. Ahsoka told him that he was becoming more arrogant, but he thought that was a good thing as he was still able to beat them easily. "The tournament is in 11 days, I won't be able to prepare myself," he thought to himself._

" _Yes, you will. Be determined and you will achieve your goal. Giving up is the pathway to failure and sometimes even death. Open yourself up to the Force. Let it guide you," the figure stated._

" _Wait. You can read my mind?" Cindo asked, surprised._

" _We are currently residing in your mind."_

 _Cindo sighed and said, "Forget I asked."_

" _That will be all. May the Force be with you," the figure said before disappearing into thin air._

Cindo woke up and rubbed his face with his hands. " _How can I be that stupid?"_ he thought to himself. "I'm gonna win this tournament," he said to himself with his newfound determination. He got up and went straight to the training rooms.

* * *

Ten days have passed since Cindo received his vision. He was putting as much effort and time into practice as he could. He would wake up early each day, going to the training rooms and practicing until he was either too tired or he had classes. Even when he felt that he was doing everything correctly he would try to find mistakes and correct them.

He was working on his footwork when he heard somebody open the door. He looked over and saw Master Plo standing in the doorway. He stopped and turned towards him.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, Master?" he asked as he was bowing.

"I came here to wish you good luck and to see you train and give you tips if I may," he answered with a hidden smile.

"Of course, Master. Any help would be good," Cindo responded as he got back into his combat stance, while Plo leaned on the wall.

He started swinging his practice swords around elegantly as Plo observed his every move intently. After a while Plo gestured Cindo to stop, before going to the weapons rack and picking up a helmet and a practice sword.

"Here. Put this on," said Plo, throwing Cindo the helmet which was used to cover the eyes of the wearer.

"Why do you want me to wear this?" Cindo asked in bewilderment as he inspected the helmet.

"Sometimes in combat you are forced to rely only on your senses and connection to the Force. I want to see if you're capable of doing that," Plo responded.

Cindo put on the helmet and got into his combat stance. He was slowly turning around in random directions trying to get any indication of where Plo was located.

" _Open yourself up to the Force,"_ he mumbled, repeating what the seemingly human figure in his visions told him. He breathed out heavily and focused. He sensed a lifeform approaching him on the right so he stepped backwards and blocked Plo's attack.

"Very good. Let's try again," Plo said, before going quiet again.

This time Cindo barely sensed a lifeform and couldn't make out where it was located. So he decided to enhance his hearing. He heard a footstep behind him and ducked just milliseconds before a sword swung over his head.

"Again," Plo said.

Cindo tried sensing a presence but to no avail once again. After a while he heard something directly ahead of him so he tried to take a step back to block, but as soon as he did he heard a footstep behind him and quickly turned around barely blocking Plo's attack.

"Very impressive. You may take the helmet off now," Plo stated as he went to the practice rack to put back the sword.

Cindo took the helmet off and went to the rack as well to place it back where it was.

"Deflecting shots from a training remote appears to be easy as it can't mask its presence. But being able to sense a Jedi Master and even let yourself not get tricked by one is on a different level," Plo said, amazed at the fact that Cindo had such strong abilities at such a young age.

"Good luck tomorrow," Plo said as he was making his way towards the door.

"Thank you, Master," Cindo said as he respectfully bowed, before going back to practicing his footwork.

Another couple of hours passed and Cindo was too tired to keep going so he decided to go back to his room. It was already dark outside, and it was way past dinner time.

Cindo entered his quarters and walked to his work desk and picked up a holo-book. He wanted to go to sleep but books always managed to grab his attention no matter what his state was. The book was called The Jedi and Sith of the old councils. It was a list of all Jedi Masters and Sith Lords that were part of their own councils from around 4000 BBY to 3000 BBY, with short biographies of each one. He read through all of the Jedi first and as expected there was nothing really interesting to learn about them. The Jedi didn't have very exciting and varying lives at that time, even during the war. But there was one that caught his attention.

A Jedi with the rank of Barsen'thor, meaning Warden of the Order. That Jedi had an incredibly powerful connection with the Force. It was so powerful that the Jedi in question relied more on Force abilities than their lightsaber. The book stated that you could physically see their Force pushes and other abilities which usually weren't visible. But there was no other information about this Jedi, not even a name or gender. So Cindo moved on to reading the part about the Sith Lords.

The Sith Lords were a completely different story. Most of them appeared to be power hungry monsters that killed anyone in their way to power. That meant that the council members changed frequently. There only appeared to be a couple of them that were able to hold their seat in the council for a long time. Their names were Darth Marr, Darth Ravage and Darth Mortis. But there was another oddity that Cindo spotted. A lord called Darth Nox, had nothing written about their physical appearance or even their actual name. Their biography was similar to the Barsen'thors. Nox was described as an incredibly powerful Force user as well but in a different way. Nox relied on their dual-bladed lightsaber but they used it with a twist. Nox would use the lightsaber as a catalyst for some Force abilities which made them more powerful and easier to use on the fly. Most of these abilities were censored since they were considered to be dark side abilities and his clearance level wasn't high enough to be able to read that part. So he moved on to the next page, which had some notes about Nox's personality. Nox appeared to be different from any other Sith at that time, the book described them as having the personality of a Jedi, which Cindo found really intriguing.

Once Cindo was done reading the book and making notes on it he noticed something weird. There was a 15 year long period where nothing was written. Cindo compared these notes to his other notes that he had about that era and found the same discrepancy. Information about what was happening between the years 3637 BBC and 3629 simply didn't exist in any of the books about the era. Cindo concluded that it was probably the fact that after the war the Jedi just focused on rebuilding the order so they didn't have the time to archive it or maybe the information was just somehow lost through time.

He looked at his chronometer and remembered that he had to wake up in a few hours so he jumped into bed and fell asleep almost instantly.

* * *

"Cindo, are you in there?" a girl's voice said while she was knocking on the door.

Cindo woke up and grunted something to himself, before getting up and walking to the door in his sleepwear. He opened the door and saw Ahsoka.

"You're late," she said angrily with her arms crossed, Kyle standing beside her.

Cindo fully woke up after her statement and ran to his chronometer. He was 15 minutes late.

"You guys can go ahead. I'll be there soon, I just need to dress myself," he said, crazily running around his room and picking up pieces of clothing.

Ahsoka shook her head, and gestured Kyle to follow her.

Cindo arrived at the main area of the tournament. The tournament took place in the training rooms of the Temple. The entrance for the training area was a huge, decorated archway that nobody could miss. On the other side of the archway was a big room with a statue in the middle and ten doors leading to training rooms.

Master Yoda was standing on a small podium in front of the statue, with younglings, Knights and Masters standing in front of him listening to his speech that he gave before every tournament. Cindo entered the room just after he finished. He maneuvered his way through the crowd until he found Ahsoka and Kyle.

"So, what was the speech about?" Cindo asked, a little bit out of breath as he ran all the way from his room.

"He was saying stuff about how we should fight with honor and that he hopes we'll have fun. That's the summary," Kyle answered, before yawning and stretching.

"Was it really that boring?" Cindo questioned.

"I only told you the interesting stuff," Kyle said still stretching, while Ahsoka and Cindo let out short laughs.

"How do we find out who and where we are supposed duel?" Cindo asked, confused as he saw no obvious way of finding out that information.

"There are screens in front of each room that have that information written and also the duel overseer will call out your name beforehand," Ahsoka explained.

Cindo nodded and went to check out the screens to see in which room he was supposed to duel in. He checked the screens on the first couple of rooms, but his name wasn't on any of them. When he got to the fifth room he spotted a familiar face. It was the kid that bullied him. Cindo up until this point still didn't manage to remember his name, but he knew that he wanted to avoid him as much as possible. He quickly checked the screen and tried to walk away as inconspicuously as he could, but someone grabbed his shoulder.

"Were you planning on leaving without saying hi?" the kid asked rhetorically.

"Can you actually not do this now," Cindo said, as he pushed away his arm and turned around.

"I can do what I please hybrid. What are you gonna do about it anyway?" the kid responded taking a step towards Cindo.

Cindo did the same and soon their heads were almost touching each other.

"You two, break it up. That's no way for future Jedi to act."

Cindo looked to the left and spotted Master Windu looking at them with his usual stern look.

"I'm sorry Master. It won't happen again," said Cindo. He bowed and walked away as fast as possible.

He finally saw his name on the screen by the sixth room. He went through the list to see if there were any familiar names but the only one he recognized was Lira, his former Rodian clanmate. He also noticed that their designated referee was Master Obi-Wan Kenobi.

"Hello, younglings. We'll quickly check if everybody is here," Kenobi said picking up a datapad.

He started going through the list. When he called a youngling's name that youngling raised their hand if they were there. Altogether he read ten names but only eight younglings raised their arms.

"Does anybody know where the other two are at?" Kenobi asked looking around the room in case he recognized them.

All of the younglings shook their heads and he continued "I'll give them another five minutes to show up. But we will have to start now anyway so I will give you quick rundown of a few important rules in case you haven't read them or you forgot."

He set the datapad down and picked up another one.

He coughed to clear his throat and said "So, twenty duelists will be advancing to the final stage which will be taking place on Tython, 2 from each room. Okay so a few rules… No disrespectful chatter between duels, no use of the Force except for Force push and Force abilities that enhance your basic physical abilities. and also you have five minutes to show up to a duel after we call out your name or you will receive an automatic loss." He kept on looking through the list of rules to see if there was anything important.

"That should be it," he said while he was fiddling around with the datapad.

"The first duel will be between Cindo and Raz'yel. You have five minutes to prepare unless you both agree to start early," Kenobi said as he was gesturing them to enter the room.

Cindo made his way to the front of the crowd. He spotted Raz'yel making his way through the crowd as well. Once he made it out of the crowd Cindo could get a good look at him. Raz'yel was a Pantorian. He had blue skin, black eyes, and white and yellow markings on his face. He was also a year or two younger than Cindo and quite a bit shorter. After eyeing out his opponent Cindo entered the room.

The walls were completely white with white mats spread along the floor and a weapons rack in one of the corners. Cindo grabbed two practice swords and started stretching while the other younglings and other Jedi entered the room to observe the duel. He looked over at Raz'yel and noticed that he was standing still and that he seemed very scared and confused, so he decided to talk to him.

"What's bothering you?" Cindo asked trying to grab Raz'yel's attention.

"I'm scared," he answered shyly turning towards Cindo, looking at the floor.

"There's no need to be scared. You may not win the tournament or even a single duel but you're here to show everyone what you know and to learn from your mistakes," Cindo stated placing his hand on his shoulder. Raz'yel looked up at him and took a deep breath to calm himself.

"Are you ready?" Cindo asked. Raz'yel simply nodded in response.

Cindo strolled back to his starting position and prepared for the duel.

"Duelists ready?" Kenobi asked with his arm lifted up in the air. Both of them nodded. Kenobi swung his hand downwards and said "Fight."

They began circling around the room slowly waiting for an attack. Nothing happened within the first few seconds so Cindo decided to take a few steps forward. Raz'yel jumped to the left and then immediately after jumped at Cindo. He blocked the attack and they exchanged a few strikes. Raz'yel quickly backed off attempting to regain his stamina, but Cindo ran after him. They got into a blade lock. Cindo was able to overpower him easily, which forced the Pantorian even further backwards. Cindo tried to kick him, but he took a step back and grabbed his leg. Cindo immediately resolved the situation by jumping up with as much force as possible, forcing Raz'yel to release his leg and landing a backflip which was rewarded by a couple of cheers from the younger members of the audience. Raz'yel immediately attempted to jab at him, but he evaded it by leaning to the right and putting one of his swords up to his neck, ending the duel.

Raz'yel sighed and started walking away with tears in his eyes as the crowd applauded Cindo. But Cindo didn't acknowledge them and instead went after Raz'yel.

"Hey!" Cindo yelled as he was running after him.

He turned around and looked at him with watery eyes. "What?"

"You did well. Why are you upset?" Cindo asked, feeling bad about making him sad.

"I didn't do well. I did terribly!" he exclaimed, obviously being angry at himself.

"Yes, you did do well! You're the most difficult opponent I have ever faced," Cindo sated loudly.

Raz'yel looked at him with a raised brow. "You really mean that?"

"Of course, I do. You're incredibly fast and determined. Through time and practice you'll become an incredible duelist I'm sure of it," Cindo said with a smile on his face.

Raz'yel's mood improved and he seemed more determined than ever. "Thanks. I promise I'll make it to the next stage and fight you again."

Cindo nodded and said "I'm looking forward to that. See you there." He took a step back and bowed to Raz'yel who bowed as well.

* * *

"Tarus and Cindo you're up next," stated Obi-Wan looking down at his datapad.

Cindo entered the room and spotted his opponent by the weapons rack. He was a human, with dark skin, green eyes and a buzz cut. He was about the same height as Cindo and he was also a year older.

As soon as the duel began Tarus ran at Cindo as fast as possible and swung at him. Cindo managed to evade the attack by sidestepping to the left letting Tarus run past him. Tarus attempted the same thing again but Cindo evaded his attack again. Tarus then decided to approach him slowly. He began swinging his practice sword wildly and with as much power as possible. Cindo blocked and evaded most of the attacks but the onslaught of strikes wasn't stopping, so Cindo Force pushed him away. When Tarus recovered and looked up Cindo was already swinging at him with his left sword. He managed to block one of his attacks in the last second but not before another swing came in from the other direction, forcing his practice blade out of his hand. Before he could fully realize what had happened, he saw a practice sword pointed at his chest.

Cindo laid his swords on the ground, helped up Tarus and bowed to him and then turned to the spectators and bowed again, before putting the swords back in the rack and exiting the room.

He went through another five duels over the next couple of hours where nothing interesting happened since he was easily able to overcome his competitors. He was already guaranteed passage into the next round of the tournament which took place one week later. He had a bit of free time so he decided to check up on Kyle and Ahsoka.

He found out that Ahsoka was in room one and Kyle in room three. He was standing before the entrance to the first room, looking at the screen which displayed each duelist's score and who was currently dueling. He found Ahsoka in second place tied with someone called Marth and they were currently dueling, so he decided to quickly jump into the room to spectate, but before he entered somebody bumped into him in the doorway.

"Watch it!" he said as he shook his head.

"Don't be such a woos," Ahsoka responded offering him a hand. He took it and she helped him stand up.

"Sorry. Didn't know it was you. So, how did it go?" he asked as he dusted off his clothes.

"I won of course. Did you expect anything else?" she asked threateningly with her hands on her hips.

"No! Of course not," he responded as quickly as he could. He then turned his attention to the right and saw Kyle standing outside of his dueling room.

"Wanna go check up on Kyle?" Cindo asked Ahsoka, pointing towards his direction.

"I was just about to do that until you walked straight into me," she exclaimed. They made their way towards Kyle. Cindo noticed that he was pacing around from the left to right as if he was nervous.

"Hey, Kyle. What's got you unsettled?" Cindo asked as they stopped behind him.

He turned around and put a hand on his forehead. "I'm just waiting for the last duel to end. I'm currently second but if Ian wins I'll have to face him again and he is the only person alongside Jen that I haven't beaten. Luckily for me he's currently dueling her, and she hasn't lost a single duel yet so I still have some hope left. And don't ask me why I'm not spectating." He then proceeded to bite his nails.

Cindo and Ahsoka knowing that talking to him would make him more nervous, just stood beside him and waited for the duel to end.

A few minutes later Jen approached out of the room victorious and Kyle put his hands on his knees and let out the deepest sigh of relief that Cindo has ever heard. He then straightened himself and turned to Cindo.

"So, when's your duel happening?" he asked relieved.

"I should hear my name getting called quite soon," he responded turning towards his designated room.

"Who are you fighting?" Ahsoka asked, intrigued.

"Lira. She's currently second with 2 defeats," Cindo exclaimed as he started moving towards his room. "Are you two coming?"

Ahsoka shrugged and looked at Kyle. "I don't have anything else to do." She then followed him with Kyle in tow.

As Cindo was approaching the room he saw Raz'yel step out of it, sweaty and exhausted.

"Did you win?" Cindo asked as he stopped in front of him.

Raz'yel looked up and wiped the sweat from his face. "Barely. I'm so close to getting to the next stage." Then he proceeded to eye out Ahsoka and Kyle. "These your friends?"

"This is Ahsoka," he said as he pointed at her, before also pointing at Kyle, "And this is Kyle."

"Nice to meet you," Raz'yel responded with a slight head bow.

"Likewise," said Kyle.

As they started striking up a conversation Cindo went over to the entrance of the room to check the standings. He was in first place, followed by Raz'yel with six wins and two defeats and Lira behind him with just one less win.

Cindo turned back to face Raz'yel and asked, "Who else did you lose to?"

Raz'yel turned away from Ahsoka and Kyle. "Lira. The duel pretty much went the same way as with you, but it was a bit longer. Why?"

"Well if I don't win you'll have to duel her again in a decider match," Cindo stated.

Raz'yel's eyes widened. "Oh no," he mumbled to himself.

Cindo walked up to him and patted him on the back. "Don't worry about it. I'll do everything I can."

Before Raz'yel could say anything Obi-Wan put his hand on Cindo's shoulder. "You're up. It's the last duel of the day. Lira is already waiting for you inside."

"I'll be there right away, Master," Cindo exclaimed.

Cindo looked back at Raz'yel who nodded and Cindo simply responed with a small smile.

He did the usual by picking up his practice swords from the rack and positioning himself at his starting location. He was feeling nervous like never before. He never had the responsibility of fighting for the good of somebody else but himself. He looked over towards the crowd and spotted Raz'yel, Ahsoka and Kyle. He could see the hopeful look on Raz'yel's face which made him more nervous. He was scared of failing his friend. He looked over at Lira and spotted that she was using two swords as well. He didn't really acknowledged her most of the time when they were in the same clan but he remembered her being very shy and scared most of the time, but now she looked incredibly determined and confident.

Obi-Wan stepped in the middle of the room and lifted his hand, for the last time that day. "Fighters ready?"

Lira and Cindo both nodded although the latter one did it subconsciously. He only realized what he had done after she started moving towards him.

" _I need to calm down,"_ he said to himself as he was forced to retreat from Lira's first attack. She attacked again and he blocked most of her strikes but was forced backwards again as he almost lost balanced.

He then remembered his lessons. " _Let go of the feelings that cloud your judgement,"_ he mumbled to himself as Lira once again went on the offensive.

He jumped to the side and retreated further back. " _Open yourself up to the Force. Let it guide you,"_ he continued. And then everything changed. He couldn't hear anything anymore, he felt weightless and he felt all of the energy surrounding him. He closed his eyes and focused on the energy. He felt calm and composed. He then opened his eyes and noticed that he subconsciously dropped one of his swords. He looked in front of him and saw that he was in a blade lock with Lira. He grabbed his other sword and used all of the Force energy he could amass to Force push Lira away. The push was so powerful that a small shockwave was visible. Lira hit the ground and cried out in pain. Cindo ran after her as fast as he could, using the Force to propel himself high into the air. He landed behind her and she managed to barely block Cindo's swing, before stumbling clumsily back onto her feet. She tried to jab at him, but he successfully pushed her arm away giving him a chance to attack. She managed to block the first few strikes but then he struck with as much power as he could, knocking one of the swords out of her hand. But Cindo continued to strike as fast as he could and not before long her other sword was forced out of her hands as well. Cindo both of his swords at her, ending the duel.

Cindo extended his hand to help her get up and she took it.

"Well fought," she said, before bowing and leaving, visibly disappointed.

Raz'yel ran up to Cindo, grabbed him by his upper arms and shook him. "That was amazing!" he yelled as the audience clapped.

Cindo didn't notice any of it as he was still in the same state as during the duel. He finally came to his senses and simply replied "Thanks."

"You had me worried for a second. At the beginning you looked so confused and anxious but then somehow you changed in an instant. It was really cool to look at," Raz'yel said still holding his arms.

Cindo still in a state of slight shock from what he just experienced repeated the same thing as he said before. "Thanks." He just couldn't stop thinking about what happened.

"Congratulations Cindo and Raz'yel you'll be going to Tython next week for the final stage. We'll send somebody to tell you the details once we finalize everything," said Obi-Wan as he was standing behind them.

They turned around and bowed. "Thank you, Master," they said at the same time. Obi-Wan simply nodded and walked away to talk to the other Jedi that were present in the room.

"So, wanna grab something to eat?" Raz'yel asked.

"Sure," Cindo answered simply. They walked outside of the room to join up with Ahsoka and Kyle and they went to dinner after an exhausting day.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Melody of the Barsen'thor (27 BBY)

Cindo and his friends were aboard a shuttle orbiting Tython. They were looking out the viewport, observing the planet.

"What do you think Razy?" asked Kyle. Raz'yel was given the nickname Razy as it was much quicker and easier to say and he also liked the nickname.

"Looks gorgeous. It's very different from Coruscant," Razy responded with widened eyes.

"You'll get to see as much of it as you like, give that we'll be here all week long," Cindo stated with a smile.

"Luckily we have you as our tour guide," Ahsoka said.

"Why me?" Cindo asked with a raised brow.

"Well you write about this planet all the time in your notes," she replied.

"You actually read some educative!?" Cindo said in shock and all of them looked at her with surprised expressions.

"What? I'm not gonna waste my time reading fifty thousand words when I can read a couple hundred and actually remember something for exams," she explained.

"Wait. I never gave you my notes and you never asked for them. How did you get them?" Cindo asked, a bit irritated.

"I kind of snuck into your room a couple of times when you were meditating or sleeping or whatever and I borrowed them," she said quietly, a bit embarrassed by her actions.

"You snuck into my room?! You could have just asked me, and I would have given them to you," Cindo explained angrily, shaking his head. Kyle and Razy shifted positions a bit to the left and started their own conversation, fearing that the one they were currently in was about to get loud.

"I know and I'm sorry. I won't repeat the same mistake," Ahsoka said, looking at the ground shamefully. She hit Cindo's weak spot. He couldn't bear people feeling bad because of something he said or did to them.

He sighed. "Don't worry about it. I'm not mad at you."

She looked up at him. "Let's just join Kyle's and Razy's conversation and leave this behind." Cindo turned around and noticed that the two of them moved a bit further away and were having a conversation. They stood up and moved to the bench that they were sitting on.

"What are you two talking about?" Cindo said as he sat down next to Kyle and Ahsoka sat down next to Razy on the other side of the bench.

"We were just discussing the other younglings that managed to get this far. A couple of them look quite a bit older than us. They look like they're close to becoming Padawans," Kyle said, nervously. Cindo looked around the passenger area of the ship and concluded that Cindo was right. More than ten of the other younglings were more than a year older than him.

"Looks like I'm the youngest one here," stated Razy. "This probably won't end well for me."

"Don't let their age trouble you. They may be older but that doesn't mean they're better," said Cindo looking at Razy, smiling.

"Huh. You actually made it. Probably just lucky," a familiar tone said. Cindo looked over to his right and spotted the annoying kid that bullied him standing right in front of him.

"Do I know you?" Cindo asked sarcastically.

"Do you think this is funny?" the kid responded.

"No, seriously. I don't remember your name, I never did as a matter of fact," Cindo said. His friends chuckled as he let out a grin.

The boy got very angry evident from his clenched fists and closed eyes. He calmed himself right after. "We'll see being funny saves you in the arena." He then walked away to some other part of the ship.

As soon as he left Ahsoka said "I never understood why he hated you so much."

"Me neither. Not that it matters anyway," said Cindo as he shrugged.

"We should get back to a brighter topic," Kyle suggested.

"I agree" said Razy.

* * *

The shuttle landed in a large clearing in the middle of a forest. The ramp opened and they walked down it. The group of younglings that was in the ship was met by Master Kit Fisto.

"Welcome to Tython younglings. You'll be staying in this camp for the next week. I've been tasked with showing you around. If you would follow me please," he said, before turning around and walking towards the tents.

"These will be your accommodations. The tents come in different housing capacities, " he said as they were walking between the tents. "The biggest tents can hold up to four younglings and don't worry you'll be able to choose who you'll be in a tenth with by walking over to that big open tent where Knight Kenobi and his Padawan, Skywalker will be assigning tents," he added as he pointed towards the aforementioned tent.

Then they walked over to the practice grounds. "These are the practice grounds. There are weapon racks, practice dummies and obstacle courses. If you wish to practice in peace you are allowed to go in the forest that surrounds this camp but don't stray too far."

And finally they walked over to a big tent which was surrounded by many smaller tents. Outside of the big tent were a couple of tables and holo-boards. "This is the supply tent. You'll come here during designated times to get your meals and anything else that you may need. You can also sign up for certain lessons and trips we've prepared, but they're completely optional. To any of you that are interested I will point out the fact that they are focused on history."

He then led them back to the ship. "If any of you have any questions, you can reach any of the Masters by and around the supply tent or anywhere else in the camp. I would recommend that you get your accommodations sorted as soon as possible and then you can begin practicing, meditating, exploring, relaxing or doing anything else that comes to your minds."

As soon as he walked away Ahsoka pinched Cindo's arm. "Come on, let's get ourselves a tent," she demanded.

Cindo nodded and soon the four of them were standing before Kenobi.

"So, Kyle, Raz'yel, Cindo and Ahsoka am I correct?" Obi-Wan asked, double checking to see if he got their names right.

"That's right, Master," Ahsoka answered.

Obi-Wan looked down at his datapad and entered some information. He handed the datapad to Anakin who carried it to a terminal. He then looked back at them. "Okay, done. You may pick whichever tent you'd like."

"Thank you, Master," said Kyle respectfully. The bowed and left right after to find a tent.

They were walking for a couple of minute, weighing their options. The eventually decided to occupy the tent that was closest to the tree line.

The inside of the tent was very simplistic. There were four beds and two extra bedrolls packed in a corner. There were also two storage units so they could put all of their belongings someplace safe. The tent had a single source of light, which was a small lantern that was on the ground by the entrance.

Kyle crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Now this is underwhelming," he said disappointedly.

"At least we won't have to sleep on the ground," Ahsoka stated reassuringly.

Kyle sighed. "Yeah you're right."

They heard a loud growl and turned around only to see Razy with his hand on his stomach. He looked up at them innocently. "What? I'm hungry."

Ahsoka rolled her eyes. "You could have just said so. Come on let's check if they're serving food yet."

Before they could leave the tent Cindo stopped them. "I'm not hungry right now so I'll stay here. You guys can leave your bags here I'll watch them while you're gone." They obliged and left their bags in the tent. Cindo opened his backpack and started putting his belongings into the storage unit. He packed some extra clothes and he also took a few holo-books with him just in case he got bored. He unpacked his things and went outside of the tent to get some fresh air.

It was a mildly hot day, not too hot and not too cold and there were only a few clouds in the sky. It rarely rained but there was never a drought since it wasn't hot enough. Cindo took a deep breath and sat down on the opposite side of where the entrance to the tent was. He could still hear or sense if anybody tried to enter the tent so he wasn't worried. He closed his eyes and took in all of the Force energy that surrounded him. He felt the Force in the trees, vegetation, wildlife but he also sensed something else. He stretched his right arm and focused on the general area where the strange Force energy was coming from. He found which way the energy was coming from and focused on it. He could hear what seemed to be a very faint soothing song. It had a very light and soft tone, which made him lose himself.

He was forced out of his daze by a crack of a tree branch. He twitched out of fear and opened his eyes. Ahsoka was standing to his right with a tree branch under her leg. When he finally came to, he noticed that it was night time.

"How long have I been sitting out here?" he asked Ahsoka calmly.

"For the past five hours or so," she answered, crouching down beside him.

Cindo looked at her with a face full of confusion. " _Didn't I just start meditating? How did six hours pass in what seemed to be a single moment?"_ he thought to himself before asking Ahsoka "And did I do anything in these six hours?"

"Well you were humming some song most of the time," she began explaining, "But I've never heard it before, so I can't help you with that," she finished, shrugging. He stood up and she followed.

"Where are the other two?" he asked as he looked around to see if the answer was going to present itself.

"They're inside the tent. If I know Kyle he'll probably be asleep already so try to be quiet," she said in a slightly quieter tone. Cindo nodded in understanding and they made their way inside the tent, where Kyle and Razy were already sleeping.

* * *

"How did you find this spot?" Cindo asked.

"I couldn't sleep so I walked around the forest for a bit and searched for an area where we could practice since the actual practice area seems to be always full," Ahsoka answered proudly.

It was now the third day of their trip to Tython and they were standing in a much smaller clearing, with a pond on the northern side and a carved stone floor covered with moss and grass in the center.

"Cool," Razy remarked simply, before running in front of them to a tree trunk that was on the ground. He put his backpack down and gestured to the others to join him. They did that and soon they unpacked everything that they brought with them; mostly practice swords and food. They had a quick meal before the began their sparring sessions.

"Hey, Cindo!" Ahsoka shouted to gain his attention.

Cindo jumped a bit. "Why would you yell? I'm sitting right next to you!" The two other boys let out short laughs.

"Sorry. Got a bit excited. Wanna spar with me first?" she asked, smiling.

"Sure." He grabbed his practice swords and stood up. He walked over to the stone floor and quickly stretched before looking at Ahsoka. "Whenever you're ready."

* * *

"I think I had enough," Razy said, as he was laying on the floor, knocked down by Cindo.

Cindo helped him get up on his feet and wiped the dust from his shoulder. "Well fought," he said with a smile.

"Thanks," Razy said returning the smile.

"Are we done for today? We've been here for five hours and the sun is about to start setting," Kyle asked, visibly tired from sparring. Cindo and Razy walked over to him.

"Yeah, I think we had enough practice for one day," Cindo said and Kyle nodded. Cindo then noticed that someone was missing.

"Where's Ahsoka?" he asked Kyle.

Kyle shrugged. "I have no idea. She said that she was going to check something out, but when I wanted to ask her what she was already gone."

"Well we can't just stand here. Let's go find her," Cindo demanded determinedly.

"That won't be needed," a girl's voice said behind him. They turned around to see Ahsoka walking towards them.

"Where were you?" Kyle asked.

"Instead of explaining, let me show you what I found," she said, before gesturing them to follow her. The boys exchanged a few confused glances with each other before shrugging and running after her.

They were running after Ahsoka for about a minute before she stopped and started climbing a tree.

"Oh, you have to be kidding me. I don't have the energy for this," Kyle said, irritated.

"Stop whining and start climbing," Razy responded, as he started climbing after Cindo and Ahsoka. Kyle unwillingly followed them.

Once Cindo got to the top of tree he was speechless. They were located on a ridge that overlooked the ancient Jedi Temple that laid there in ruins, the sun slowly setting behind it.

"It's beautiful," Razy said quietly.

Cindo was still just sitting on a branch not saying a word. The other three kids started up a conversation about something. He wanted to join but then he heard the song again, but this time it he could hear it more loudly and clearly. He was slowly trailing off again, but this time he was stopped by Ahsoka. She put her arm on his shoulder and gently shook him. He turned his head to face her.

"You coming?" she asked.

Cindo responded with a nod and Ahsoka descended the tree. Before he started climbing downwards he took one last look at the Temple.

When they got back Cindo decided to immediately go to the supply tent to check if there were any planned trips to the old Jedi Temple. And sure enough there were, so he decided to ask his friends if they wanted to come along. He found them just outside of their tent.

"When's the trip again?" Kyle asked, as he was cleaning his clothes.

"We're supposedly leaving tomorrow morning," Cindo answered, with one of his feet on a rock and his arms resting on his thighs.

"No way! I'm gonna have a nice, long sleep if you don't mind," Kyle exclaimed, focusing on a spot of dirt that he couldn't get rid of.

"I'll come with you," Razy said with Ahsoka quickly following up, "Me too."

"Let's go sign up then," Cindo said with a smile.

* * *

The next morning the tree of them and a few other younglings were standing outside of the camp in line waiting to get their supplies for the trip.

"You excited?" Ahsoka asked Cindo.

"No. It's not like I've been wanting to visit the Temple for years now," he answered sarcastically.

They grabbed their supplies and went outside of the tent to the gathering area. After a while the group of younglings was approached by Master Fisto and somebody else walking behind him.

"Good morning, younglings. I'll be your guide today," he said before asking. "So is anybody missing? There should be eight of you."

The younglings looked around to see if anybody was missing and when there was no name called out Kit said, "Well looks like everybody is here. So, let's begin."

He started walking towards the opposite side of the sun and the younglings followed. They were walking for about an hour before Ahsoka made her way to the front of the line and stood beside Kit. "Master, how close are we?" she asked, a bit bored from the walking. Kit looked down at her and smiled. "We should be coming up on it within the next few minutes." Ahsoka nodded and joined Cindo and Razy in the back of the line.

After a few minutes they were greeted by a view of the Temple. The exterior architecture was inspired by Alderaan bastions and B'omarr monesteries. It had three equidistant cupolas surrounding a large central one, though two of them have all but collapsed and the other two were overgrown. There was a also a large central plaza, with the remains of a fountain and statues and a training area.

Kit stopped at the training area and turned towards the younglings. "You have ten minutes of free time. You can either eat or explore the training area, but please do not stray from it, this is a heritage site after all."

The younglings scattered around the area. Cindo, Razy and Ahsoka went and sat down around a small tree which was located in the middle of the training area.

"So, what do you guys think?" Ahsoka asked them.

"It's even more incredible up close," Razy answered, his voice full of enthusiasm. He and Ahsoka started getting out their food while Cindo was just sitting there staring at the Temple.

Ahsoka nudged him. "Hey, what's wrong?"

He shook his head and looked at her. "It's that song again, but this time I can hear it even more clearly than before."

"What song? I don't hear anything," Razy said as he began eating.

"Is it the same song that you were humming when you were meditating outside the tent?" Ahsoka asked him and he responded with a nod.

"Whatever the source is, you'll probably find it in there," Razy said with a full mouth of food, pointing at the Temple.

After their lunch break they gathered up with the other younglings and Kit who proceeded to give them a tour of the plaza right outside the Temple. He went through all of the things that used to be there, that were destroyed by the Sith attack and time. He then stopped in front of the wooden statues, lined across each side of main entrance to the Temple. There were four statues on each side of the entrance. "And here is what remains of the statues of the greatest Jedi of the Old Republic." He slowly moved his arm through the air going by all the statues.

"Could we please hear their names, because I don't recognize most of them, Master," Cindo requested as politely as he could.

"Of course, Cindo," he said with his signature smile before continuing, "On the left we have Satele Shan, Orgus Din, Bela Kiwiiks and Kavar. And on the other side are Vandar Torake, Lucien Dray, Syo Bakarn and… uhm…" He put a finger on his lip, trying to remember who the last statue was dedicated to. "Now this is awkward," he remarked to himself. He approached the statue and cleaned the plaque with the persons name on it, but the engraving was illegible. And also, the fact that the top half of the statue was missing didn't help either. "It seems as though I will have to brush up my knowledge of history," he said as he was looking at the statue thoughtfully. He then turned to the younglings. "If I'm completely honest with you, I have no idea who this is supposed to be," he said a bit disappointed in himself. "But let's not worry about that. It's time to go inside the Temple, but before we go I'm going to have to tell you a couple of rules seeing as we will be walking inside ruins that could collapse at any time," he continued as he walked to the entrance.

"Strange," Cindo said to himself, lost in his thoughts. He slowly approached the statue, trying to see if he could identify it himself. After a minute of looking all around the statue and finding nothing he joined up with the rest of the group that was just entering the Temple.

"I'll repeat this one more time just in case. Do not stray from the path. Follow me at all times, understand?" Kit said as loudly as he could while also staying as friendly as always. The younglings nodded in response. "Good," he said, before turning around and entering the ruined Temple, the group of younglings following him excitedly.

The Temple was mostly made out of wood, stone and a small amount of ferrocrete where it was crucially needed to prevent the Temple from collapsing. The main hall of the Temple had many podiums for statues or other artifacts, but most of them were either destroyed or they weren't there at all.

"Master, where are the things that are supposed to be on the podiums?" Cindo yelled from the back of the group. Kit turned around on his heels and looked at Cindo.

"The artifacts that were here were extracted to the Temple on Coruscant after the Sith invasion. The Jedi were able to extract most of them, but there were also many that were either stolen or destroyed," he answered.

"Thank you, Master," Cindo said in reply. Kit nodded and continued to lead the group up one of the ramps in the main hall.

"We'll be checking out the Archives now. Do not stray from the group. Every other place on the second floor is off limits due to the incredibly poor structural integrity of this building," he explained to the younglings as they were going up the ramp.

"Which rooms are the ones that we can't enter?" one of the other younglings asked.

"The council chamber, the meditation room and the landing pad. The doorways have signs in front of them so you can't miss them."

They arrived at the top of the ramp, turned left and walked around the upper catwalk until they were standing in front of a big doorway.

"These are the Archives," Kit said, waving his hand.

The room was filled with wooden tables with engravings of the Jedi code, large holo-book shelfs and terminals.

"It looks more like a library to me," Ahsoka remarked, while resting a hand on her hip.

"That's because it actually was a library, but there was no place to build a full-scale archive so they decided to merge it with the library," Kit explained, not looking at them, instead observing the room. He turned around to face the group. "Since there is nothing more you can destroy I'll let you explore the Archives for yourselves." Then his commlink started beeping. "Seems like I have a call to attend to anyway. Have fun." He turned away and walked towards the ramp, where he started talking with whoever was calling him.

The younglings made their way inside the Archives. They all stuck together, looking at the engravings and left-overs of tapestries on the walls.

"Why can't the Temple on Coruscant be as beautiful and simple as this?" Razy asked rhetorically, running his hand across some engravings on one of the tables. Ahsoka nodded in agreement. Cindo was about to add something when he started hearing that blasted song again. At this point it was beginning to irritate him. But he had a feeling that the source was in that room so he started looking around furiously. "I'm gonna find the thing that's making that sound and it it's…" he started mumbling to himself before being interrupted.

" _Have we taught you nothing?"_ a voice said aggressively. Cindo straightened out in surprise and started looking around wildly to see who was talking to him. He noticed that Ahsoka and Razy rejoined the rest of the group in trying to make out what the tapestries on the walls meant. He was still hearing the song, so he decided to continue his search as he grew more furious by the second.

" _Blind rage is the path to failure,"_ a different voice, much softer and friendlier than the other one said.

" _Is this another lesson, because if it is, I'm currently busy,"_ he thought to himself knowing that they could hear him.

" _No lesson. Only a reminder of what you have already learned,"_ the voice stated. Cindo facepalmed. How could he forget. The Force was his greatest tool, it was the thing that made him hear the song in the first place, so it could theoretically help him locate the source as well.

" _Still so young and foolish,"_ the aggressive voice remarked.

" _What do you mean foolish?"_ Cindo asked.

" _The Force is not a tool you imbecile! It is the only friend you can rely on,"_ the voice responded. That statement confused him. He was taught to use the Force as a tool to overcome evil and do good things.

" _But even friends aren't always there for you,"_ the other voice added.

" _Wait. You just said that I should trust the Force as it is my only friend, but now you're saying that I can't always trust on it being there?"_ Cindo thought, confused.

" _The only person you can ever trust is yourself. There might be a time in your life when your connection to the Force will disappear,"_ the friendlier voice answered.

" _Is that even possible?"_ Cindo thought, the mere thought of losing his Force powers scaring him.

The voices stopped responding so he continued his search for the source of the melody. He let out his frustration with a deep sigh. He focused on the song and let the Force show him the way to the source. He started walking towards where the Force told him to with his eyes closed. When it stopped giving him signals he reopened his eyes and noticed that he was standing in front of a terminal. It looked like any other terminal in the room, but he felt something different about it; some sort of mechanism. He reached out with the Force and felt the mechanism move and he also heard some screeching and cracking, probably since the mechanism hasn't been used in a long. The compartment opened and Cindo had to cover his eyes from the bright light that emerged from it. The song stopped and the bright light slowly withered away. He looked inside the compartment and found a small transparent crystal and what appeared to be a cracked holo-recording. He took the crystal and observed it intriguingly.

"A kyber crystal? What's that doing here?" he said to himself. _"It probably wanted me to find it,"_ he thought. It was the only logical conclusion he came up with. Him being the only one able to hear the melody and it stopping as soon as he found it had to mean that the crystal was meant for him. But he didn't understand why the song stopped playing and why it stopped shining. It appeared as though it lost all of its energy as soon as he found it. He would have to research this further. He observed the area to see if anybody was watching him and when he made sure nobody was looking at him he put the crystal in his bag. He then turned his attention over to the cracked holo-recording. He tried turning on the terminal to play it but to no avail, so he decided to take it to Kit. Kit just finished his call and was making his way back to the Archives.

"Master!" Cindo called out as he ran out of the room with the recording in his hand.

"What is it, Cindo?" he asked the youngling.

"I found this by an old terminal," he responded, handing him the recording.

Kit took it and observed it for a couple of seconds. "Interesting." He observed it for a while longer before looking at Cindo. "Good find. We'll play it back at the camp. Now let's round up everybody and head back." Cindo nodded and went to find the group of younglings, leaving Kit outside of the Archives with the recording. " _Very intriguing indeed,"_ he thought, before putting the recording in his pocket.

* * *

Kit and Cindo walked into the tent where all of the supplies and a couple of terminals were located. Kit walked over to one of the terminals where Anakin was standing.

"Padawan, would you mind checking this recording for me and the youngling," he said handing him the recording.

"Of course, Master," Anakin obliged, before taking the recording and inspecting it in his hands. "Well, the outer protective layer is cracked and it looks like it's a little bit scratched up on the inside," he determined.

"Can you play it?" Cindo asked eagerly, leaning on a desk with his hands.

"It should work although some of it might be corrupted," Anakin explained, still examining the recording for any extra damage. "So, either the picture will be distorted, the voice won't be clear or if we're unlucky both things will happen," he added, putting the recording in the terminal. He typed in a few things which made the recording play.

A figure with a hood over their head appeared in the hologram, but it immediately started glitching out. The first part of the recording had next to no sound except for glitching. "… to Taris, … Tatooine and Alderaan… cure Jedi… Plague… Tasked with tracking the plaguemaster… Vivicar vessel… Lord Morrhage was the true plaguemaster… Freed… Ancient shielding technique… Returned to Tython and went into exile… Council granted me title of Barsen'thor; Warden of the Order…" a glitched out feminine voice was saying. The recording stopped.

"Astonishing… The Barsen'thor really did exist," Kit mumbled, looking at the hologram with his hands behind his back. He looked at Anakin. "Padawan, is there a way for us to repair the recording?"

"I don't have the equipment I need. I can try to do it once we get back to Coruscant. But since this thing is old and damaged I don't think I'll be able to extract much more out of it," Anakin explained.

Suddenly Obi-Wan walked into the tent. "Good day to you, Master Fisto," he said as he respectfully bowed before continuing, "I presume the trip went well?"

"Better than expected. Cindo here found an old holorecording, that I bet you'll want to see."

Kit gestured Anakin to replay the recording and he obliged. Obi-Wan eyed the hologram, while biting his lips, lost in his thoughts. The hologram ended and he started stroking his chin. "So, the Barsen'thor really did exist? And it's a she?" he asked.

Kit nodded. "All signs are pointing towards it."

"Why is all of this so important, if I may ask, Masters?" Cindo asked respectfully, sitting on a table behind them with one of his hands supporting his head.

"The existence of the Barsen'thor was never proven. There were some references to a Jedi who's Force and healing powers were unmatched by any Jedi in the Order at that time, but there was no concrete proof," Obi wan explained to him, still in the same thinking pose as before.

Kit walked up to Cindo and put a hand on his shoulder, making him look up. "You've made an incredible discovery today, Cindo. The Order thanks you for your service," he said taking a step back and bowing. Cindo immediately jumped up onto his feet and did the same. The feeling of a Master bowing to him was something he never thought he would experience. It was probably the happiest moment of his life up until that point and one that he would remember forever.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Getting Answers (27 BBY)

"Cindo, come out when you're ready, we're about to begin," Anakin said, looking through the entrance of the tent.

"I'll be right there!" Cindo said excitedly as he put on his shoes. It was currently the last day of their visit to Tython and oh what a visit it was. A few days before he helped Anakin fix part of the recording, which caused the person in the recording to sound normal. The person sounded exactly the same as one of the hooded women he kept hearing and seeing. So, he concluded that one of them was the Barsen'thor, but that still didn't answer the question of why they were giving him lessons. He tried contacting them multiple times to no avail, so he decided to focus on the tournament. He was fighting hard for the past two days, making it past the group stages and the first few bracket matches. He was currently in the finals. He jumped down from his bead and quickly stretched his arms, before running out of the tent towards the arena.

The arena was where the camp practice area used to be, only that all of the extra training equipment was removed, and a circle was drawn, signifying where the duel area was. There were people all around the outer side of the circle; from younglings to Masters who flew in for the tournament.

Cindo ran to the weapons rack and took two practice swords from it as usual. He was running late because he was meditating. He positioned himself at his starting position and observed his opponent. He completely forgot that he was fighting his bully or ex-bully since he almost never interacted with him after he was outed from the clan. The bully was glaring at him angrily with his green eyes, but the only thing Cindo did was return a smile.

"I still don't know your name," he said happily, knowing all too well how much that sentence annoyed him.

The bully clenched his fists and began breathing nervously. He looked at the ground, closed his eyes and attempted to calm himself down, while running a hand through his brown hair multiple times.

"Calm yourself, calm yourself, calm yourself," he told himself silently.

"No, but really, what's your name?" Cindo asked again with a grin.

"It's Derel," he said as he breathed out slowly and began loosening his fists.

"Tell me a bit about yourself," Cindo yelled across the arena. The audience was finding this conversation amusing.

"Stop talking!" he demanded furiously. He then wiped a hand across his face and went to pick up a practice sword.

"Ready?" Kenobi asked both of them. They both nodded and Kenobi swung his arm through the air signifying the start of the duel.

Both of them slowly approached each other. Cindo looked for any holes in his basic defensive stance, while they were moving closer towards one another. Derel launched a quick swing at Cindo, but Cindo managed to block it and immediately go on the counter-attack. The exchanged a few swings. Derel Force jumped over him and swung at him in the air. Cindo blocked the first strike and then the follow up strike when he landed. Derel continued swinging wildly fueled by his hatred for Cindo. They got into a blade lock and Derel was the one pressing down on Cindo.

"You're a failure," Derel said, filled with hate, while he kept on pushing Cindo towards the ground.

When the lock turned into a stalemate Derel decided to start bashing his practice swords down with as much power and speed as he could. Cindo kept on getting knocked down closer to the ground. He kicked his knee, which forced him to back off as he let out a silent cry of pain. Cindo got back up and quickly fixed his grip. He glanced at Derel and he felt that there was something different about him. He felt pure rage and hatred. When Derel looked up Cindo noticed the slight yellow color mixed with his normal green eyes.

Before Cindo could fully comprehend what was going on with him, he let out a terrifying scream and lunged at him with full force. Cindo was barely able to evade the attack, which sent Derel flying past him. He turned around with incredible speed, lunging at Cindo again. They again exchanged swings, but with every swing Cindo was forced back by a few steps. Cindo's constant blocking enraged Derel even further and he punched Cindo in his mid-section as hard as he could. He then punched him in the face which sent him flying back through the air and landing on his back in pain. A few of the spectators were catching on to what was happening and they were slowly sneaking up on Derel, who was slowly giving into his anger.

Derel walked up to Cindo who was laying on the grounds with hands on his stomach.

" _Use what you have learned,"_ the voices in his head reminded him.

"Pathetic," Derel said viciously as he raised his practice sword.

But before he could strike, Cindo turned around to face him and blasted him away with the Force. Derel was sent flying through the air and he rolled a couple of times when he ended. He got up on his and jumped at Cindo again, only to be Force pushed away once again. He growled as he was forced to the ground again. Cindo dropped his practice swords and walked towards him.

"Stay down," he warned him. He could feel the Force flowing through him freely once again, but this time it was even stronger. The last time this happened it only improved his sense, but this time he felt pure power and light.

Derel didn't heed his warning and attempted to get back up again only to be Force pushed into a tree, with such power that his managed to make a dent in the tree, knocking him unconscious.

Cindo looked down at his hands and saw that they were surrounded by a faint outline of light, which slowly began disappearing. He felt incredible strain and fatigue settle in at once. He fell on his knees with his hands as support. He sensed that somebody was looking at him. No, it wasn't all of the observers that stopped in their tracks upon seeing the outline of light around his hands, it was somebody else. He could sense power like never before. He looked over to where he sensed the power coming from and noticed two familiar hooded figures watching him from the tree line. At that point Cindo was having trouble breathing and he felt himself slowly falling into unconsciousness. The figures looked at him and one of them nodded at him. " _You are ready,"_ one of the figures said before they disappeared behind a tree. Then everything went dark.

* * *

 _A foggy forest with humongous trees. Screams and blaster fire coming from all directions. Cindo was in a war zone. Bodies of soldiers wearing white armor and wookies littered the floor. But there was something else. In the midst of all the fighting he could hear crying. There was a path carved out through the fog, so he followed it. The crying was getting closer and closer. He finally came up on a small wooden house, filled with holes from blasters and explosions. When he got close he heard two lightsabers striking against each other. He peeked through the door and was greeted by the sight of two people fighting. The first was a tall man dressed in black, wearing a mask through which deep and loud breathing could be heard. The man reeked of darkness. The other one was dressed in robes with a hood covering his head. He was lying on the ground with his shattered lightsaber next to him._

" _I sense someone far more powerful than you nearby. Where is your master?" the man with the mask said without emotion in his voice, while Force choking him in the air._

" _The dark side has clouded your mind. You killed my master years ago," the hooded man answered while gasping for air._

" _Then now you will share his fate," the man with the mask responded angrily, before swinging at his defenseless opponent. But his lightsaber was Forced out of his hand. He turned around and spotted a child holding his lightsaber defensively._

" _A son?" Vader said, surprised._

" _Run!" the father yelled, before the man with the mask snapped his neck, letting his body fall to the floor._

 _The man started approaching the child and the child took steps in the opposite direction, while pointing the lightsaber at him. Cindo sensed multiple lifeforms approaching, so he turned around and saw that three more soldiers with white armor and another that appeared to look like an officer were running towards the house. They ran straight through Cindo._

" _Lord Vader!" the officer greeted, relieved. He then spotted the boy with the lightsaber and gestured the soldiers to execute him. Before they could fire though Vader grabbed his lightsaber with the Force and slaughtered all four of them while the child fearfully watched. After slaughtering his men Vader approached the child and looked down at him. "Come with me. More will be here soon." The child reluctantly obliged and started following him out of the house._

* * *

Cindo woke up in a familiarly comfortable bed. He looked around and immediately concluded that he was in his room.

" _How did I get here?"_ he asked himself, still coming out of his daze.

"I can answer that for you," a kind male voice responded, as if he read his mind.

Cindo pulled himself up into a sitting position. He noticed that Obi-Wan was sitting next to his bed, with Ahsoka, Razy and Kyle sleeping on the floor. Obi-Wan started nudging Kyle and he woke up accidentally kicking Ahsoka in her leg. She opened her eyes and instinctively hit Kyle back. He cried out in pain, waking Razy.

"They haven't left your side since we got back from Tython," Kenobi explained calmly, observing them as they started arguing. After a few angry sentences were exchanged they noticed that Cindo woke up and immediately went to hug him.

"Guys I'm fine. You don't need to suffocate me," he said, struggling to breathe. They backed off.

"How are you feeling?" Razy said, always the concerned one.

"I'm fine, thank you," With a smile. They wanted to ask so many more questions but they were interrupted by Kenobi. "Younglings, I would like to discuss these recent events with Cindo in private. I promise we'll be quick," Kenobi told them. They nodded and reluctantly left the room.

"What do you want to discuss master?" Cindo asked.

Obi-Wan leaned forward and started rubbing his temples. "I wanted to start off asking how you feel, but since that's already done I'll move on. Do you know why you might have fallen unconscious, because we checked everything, and you were fine, you just weren't waking up."

"Well, after I Force pushed Derel the last time I could feel immense power, but it disappeared and I felt nauseous," Cindo explained.

"Interesting. You probably fell unconscious because you're not used to this much power and so it must've completely drained you," Kenobi theorized. "But there is also something else I would like to discuss with you," he continued.

"Before we continue master, I would like to ask what happened with Derel?" Cindo asked.

Obi-Wan's face turned grim. "He gave into his emotions, turning to the dark side. We were forced to wipe his memory and we'll be retraining him. Hopefully this does not happen again."

Cindo nodded in understanding an moved on with the conversation. "You wanted to discuss something else, master?"

"Ahsoka told me that you were hearing some sort of melody throughout your stay on Tython. Care to explain?" Kenobi said, interested.

"Well it started out when I first meditated there. At first it was faint but it became clearer the closer I got to the Temple. The melody lead me to some old terminal which was locked by some strange mechanism, which I unlocked with the Force. And inside was a shining kyber crystal and the recording." Cindo said.

Kenobi started stroking his chin. "A kyber crystal? Strange. May I see it?" he asked. Cindo nodded and stood up to get his bag which was on his table. He sat down on the bed and opened it. He searched around the bag, before pulling out the crystal and handing it to Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan inspected the see-through crystal for a couple of moments. "Incredible. A lifeless kyber crystal. Didn't you say that it was shining," he said with an astonished tone.

"It was giving off a blinding shine, but only for a few moments, then it went away with the melody as well," Cindo explained.

"Hmm… I should report this to Master Yoda, he knows more about these things. Come with me," he said, standing up and putting the crystal in his pocket. They walked out of the room and were greeted by the three younglings.

"Kids, the situation just got a bit more complicated, so it will take some time before your friend here will be able to join you," he explained walking past them, Cindo following.

Ahsoka was about to run after them, but she was stopped by Razy putting a hand on her shoulder. "Let's leave them be, it seems like whatever they're doing is important. Let's go do something else, he can join us later." Ahsoka reluctantly agreed and they started walking off in the other direction.

* * *

Cindo was waiting outside of Master Yoda's quarters for about five minutes. Having a private talk with the Grand Master of the order at the age of eleven was no small deal. He was nervously pacing outside of the quarters. The door finally opened, and Kenobi walked out with a smile on his face. "You can go in," he said before leaving.

Cindo walked into the poorly lit room. It was nothing like Cindo expected. It was just like his room only bigger. He knew that the Jedi were supposed to be minimalistic, but he expected a bit more luxury in the room where the Grand Master of the Order resided.

"Sit down, you may," a high-pitched and mildly rough voice said.

Cindo sat down on a meditation chair facing Yoda's.

He eyed out Cindo before saying, "So a lifeless crystal found, you have, but claim that always dead it was not?"

"Yes, master. When I found it, it was full of life and energy and it was also producing a melody," Cindo once again explained.

"So, calling to you it was," Yoda concluded, handing him back the crystal.

"I thought so as well master, but it doesn't make any sense. Why would there be a crystal waiting for me in a terminal that has been abandoned for millennia."

"The answer to that I do not know," Yoda said, with a bit of sadness in his voice. Cindo slightly jerked. If the Grand Master himself couldn't explain this, who could. _"The two women,"_ he thought to himself.

"Thinking about somebody who could answer this, are you?" How did he… "Work on shielding your thoughts, you should," he said, "Tell me more about these mysterious women, you should," he continued, visibly intrigued.

"Well as you said I've been talking to these two women in my head. I usually see them in some sort of vision where they teach me things about the Force. I know that one of them is the old Barsen'thor, but I still don't know who the other one is," Cindo said.

"Teach you through visions they cannot. Another plain of existence, that place is." Yoda explained to him.

"But how is this possible?" Cindo asked.

"Using you as a conduit to project themselves in your head, they appear to be. Only possible with some sort of deep and strong connection this is," Yoda said wisely.

"Yes, but what sort of connection? And I've also seen them outside of my head once, they were observing my duel with Derel and after the duel was over they said that I was ready, but for what?" None of this made sense to Cindo, why couldn't he just be a normal Jedi?

"Outside of your mind, seen them you have? Power like this posses neither you or they should," he said, looking through the window thoughtfully.

"What do I do master?" he asked Yoda, hoping for a definitive answer.

"Try contacting them you should. Ask them why and how, helping you they are," Yoda responded.

"I will try, master," Cindo agreed, before getting up and turning to the door. Before he could take a step Yoda asked, sensing his unease, "Something else bothering you, there is?" He immediately sat back down.

"I got this vision while I was unconscious. I saw some sort of Sith killing a Jedi and taking his child," Cindo told him.

"A vision of the future received you have. Full of surprises you are. News of a Sith in the future not good to know it is," Yoda said, with a barely noticeable smile. Cindo knew all too well that as an eleven-year-old he shouldn't be having clear visions as that one.

"But I don't know the point of the vision. It was just a scene that happened and I wasn't in any way connected to it," Cindo said.

"But you might be," Yoda said wisely.

"What do you mean by that, master?" Cindo asked with a confused look on his face.

"Always in motion the future is. Many different results there are," he explained to the boy.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Calm (26 BBY)

Cindo did as Master Yoda told him. He tried to contact the women every day since their conversation occurred but to no avail. Ten days have passed since then. He tried meditating, talking to himself through thoughts and even loudly talking to himself. Nothing worked. Ahsoka was currently sitting beside him on his bed as he tried to communicate with the women once again through meditation.

He let out a sigh and Ahsoka looked at him worriedly. "Nothing?"

"Nope," he answered simply looking down disappointedly.

"If they're teaching you things why aren't they helping you when you need them?" Ahsoka asked with a confused expression.

Cindo looked at her and shrugged. "I don't know and it's not like I asked for their help, they just started appearing out of nowhere and started teaching me things." That statement was true, but he didn't mention that they saved him from turning to the dark side. It was an event that only he and the Council knew happened and it would hopefully stay that way.

"There's nothing else? They just appeared one day and that's it? Because if that's the case it could just be your imagination," Ahsoka said reassuringly.

Cindo turned towards her and gave her a small smile. He could always count on his friends to at least try to get him into a better mood and find easy solutions to everything. If only it was that simple. His smile slowly faded away. "They're not part of my imagination, Master Yoda said so." He started staring at the ground again. Ahsoka couldn't really question that statement since it was issued by a person who was wiser than any other in the order. So, she just sat there and thought.

After a short pause she put a hand on his shoulder. "I have classes in five minutes, but I can stay, and we can keep talking if you'd like," she offered.

"No, thanks. Go to class and enjoy your time. Don't worry about me, I'll find a way to contact them," he said reassuringly. She patted him on the back and left the quarters.

"Quite a friend you've got there," a female voice said. He looked up and saw the Togruta leaning on the wall by the doorway, with her hood up.

Cindo stood up. "Where were you? I've been trying to contact you for days," he said with an annoyed tone and his arms crossed over his chest.

"You'll learn soon enough," she calmly responded.

Cindo had enough. He was never given a definitive answer to anything he asked. He wanted answers. He walked over to the Togruta. "Why are you doing this? What's the point? Answer me!" he demanded, pointing a finger at her.

A smirk formed under her hood. "Where would the fun in that be?" He squeezed his hands into fists and he swung at her. She didn't even move. He tried punching her again this time observing his hand. It went right through her as if she wasn't there.

Cindo hung his head and sighed. She opened her mouth to say something but Cindo stopped her by saying, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that. If anything, I should be grateful for the things you've done for me and the things you taught me."

The woman's face dropped into a sad one. She walked up to Cindo, kneeled down to his level and put a hand on his shoulder. "I know these things must be hard for you to comprehend since you're still so young and nobody in your age should be learning these things as fast as you are. You feel overwhelmed by everything and that's normal. But you've been doing incredibly well so far so don't stop. We believe in you and now it's your time to start believing in yourself. You have a great future ahead of you so don't waste it. Your final test will begin soon and if you succeed your training can properly begin," she said, this time with emotion in her voice.

Cindo couldn't believe what he heard. After trying to ask them things countless times he finally got an answer, it may not have been one that he wanted to receive, but it was less cryptic. They believed in him. He didn't know who she was but she knew that the other woman was the Barsen'thor of the Old Republic's Jedi order, one of the greatest Jedi of all time. He looked up at her with his newfound confidence and determination and said. "I'll be waiting." She nodded and slowly vanished into the air.

* * *

 _A few days later…-_

"Wake up, youngling," a familiar and friendly voice said, nudging his shoulder. Cindo hesitantly opened his eyes and realized that he had fallen asleep while studying Rancor behavior and hunting patterns. He closed the holo-book and looked and saw that Obi-Wan was the one that woke him up. He yawned and stretched his arms.

"I presume that studying isn't your forte," he said, his arm still on his shoulder.

"Just certain subjects," Cindo told him while rubbing his face with his hands.

"We all have weaknesses," he explained simply.

"How can I help you, Master?" Cindo asked as he stood up and turned to face him.

"Master Luminara sent me to remind you that you will be attending the gathering in two days," he told him calmly. Cindo flinched slightly. He completely forgot. The Gathering was a sacred ceremony in which Jedi got their lightsaber crystals and later forged the lightsabers themselves. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity and he simply forgot about it.

Obi-Wan eyed him with amusement. "You forgot, didn't you?"

Cindo nodded shamefully _and_ Obi-Wan shook his head with amusement. Cindo went to put the book into place and Obi-Wan felt something odd. Behind Cindo's façade he could sense a fear and an enormous amount of stress.

His expression dulled a bit. "I know what you're going through. Master Yoda told me."

Cindo stopped what he was doing, hung his head and closed his eyes. He wasn't willing to go through this again. Although he got a confidence boost from the ghost, he couldn't help but to stress over if he was ready or worthy of their final test. He was scared of failing.

"I can't do much about the ghosts but I can try to ease your mind. Do you want to hear a secret?" said Obi-Wan teasingly.

"What secret?" Cindo asked, this time full of intrigue.

"Well, I may have overheard a conversation between Master Yoda and Master Windu when I was entering Yoda's quarters. And if I heard correctly they mentioned a certain someone getting given a chance to go through the Padawan trials, if they successfully complete the gathering of course." Cindo's eyes lit up. He, a Padawan? Well of course he was old enough to be one, but he just never expected it to happen so soon after he would get his lightsabers.

"Really?" Cindo asked just to be sure.

"Really," Obi-Wan simply answered with a smile.

* * *

 _I know it's been way too long of a wait for a short chapter like this one. But I've been quite busy with school and I needed some way to set up the Gathering._

 _And I'll say right now that you shouldn't expect very frequent updates until around the 20th June, because of school. I'll try to get out a chapter every 1-2 weeks but I can't promise more unless I feel really motivated and write something good in a day or two. But after the 20th (and if my motivation to write this doesn't dwindle) I'll try to post at least a chapter per week._


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The Gathering (26 BBY)

Ilum. A lifeless planet covered in ice and snow, and yet so powerful in the Force, that you could feel the energy as soon as you came into view of the planet. But for every good thing there is also at least one bad thing. Ilum was plagued by wars throughout its history. Ever since it was discovered ancient and now fallen empires tried to harvest the planet's most valuable resource – kyber crystals, with only the Jedi to defend them. As was evident they managed to succeed every time.

"Wow… It feels so peaceful," Kyle said with widened eyes. Him, Cindo and Ahsoka were observing the planet from a viewport on the Crucible. The Crucible was an ancient ship that had been used to ferry younglings from Coruscant to Ilum. Razy wasn't with them since he still had a few years of training ahead of him before he could attend the Gathering himself.

Cindo did as he was taught and opened up to the Force. It sent feelings of peace and happiness through him. He tried to focus as hard as he could, but he just couldn't ignore Ahsoka rocking backwards and forwards, nudging him slightly every time. "Can you please stop doing that."

She stopped rocking and looked at him with a raised brow. "Aren't you excited about getting to make your very own lightsaber?"

"Of course I am," he answered.

"Then why are you so uptight?" she said, nudging him with her shoulder. But Cindo didn't react. His face stayed emotionless. He hadn't told them that he would take part in a " _final test"_ as one of the ghosts called it. He had a feeling it would happen during the Gathering, since it is then when the younglings are forced to fight their fears and shortcomings.

"Hey, you alright?" Ahsoka asked, nudging him again.

He slightly flinched and then shook his head after. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine."

She stood up, put her hands on her hips and looked at him angrily. "No, you're obviously not fine! You've been zoning out more and more recently. We're friends. Tell us what's bothering you and we'll help you out with the best of our abilities."

"I said I'm fine," he lied, although he knew that what Ahsoka was saying was true. He just needed to relax and prepare himself for whatever this test might be.

Ahsoka sighed, sat back down and looked at the ground.

"Ahh, it's good to see that younglings haven't really changed much in a thousand years," Professor Huyang-the architect droid said. He was speaking from experience, being over a thousand years old.

Cindo turned back around to look through the viewport and noticed that Kyle was still looking at the icy landscape of the planet completely mesmerized. They didn't say another word for the rest of the trip.

The ship landed just in front of a large ice wall and lowered its ramp. The younglings ran out excitedly but were slightly surprised by the freezing wind. They were wearing extra layers of thick coats but that still didn't do enough to protect them from it. Obi-Wan – their guide, ran towards the wall and gestured for the younglings to follow. All ten of them obliged and ran towards him. When he made sure that they were all accounted for they started walking alongside the wall. A few minutes of trekking through harsh conditions, they came up on a very narrow crevice in the wall. He turned towards the group. "Everybody reach out and focus. We have to use our combined power to open the pathway." The younglings did as he commanded. The wall started shifting and the crevice widened as a result.

Obi-Wan went through it and the younglings followed. They followed the crevice carefully for a while, making sure that they didn't do anything to cause an avalanche. After a while the crevice widened and turned into a triangular hallway. They entered a large, circular, dark room with statues and obelisks sticking out of the snowy ground. Parts of the wall had ancient Jedi texts engraved into it. There was also a large clump of ice on one of the walls, which looked like another gateway and a large chandelier with a large crystal in the center and a couple of smaller crystals on the sides hanging off the ceiling. Master Yoda was sitting on a small pile of rocks in the middle of the room.

"Waited for you, I have," he said as the younglings gathered around him.

"Here gathered you have because ready for the Gathering we deemed you to be." He pulled out his lightsaber and igniting it. It hummed to life with a light green color. He showed it to the younglings so they got a good look at it.

"The weapon of the Jedi, the lightsaber is. This weapon, your life it will become and at the center of it the kyber crystal is." He turned off his lightsaber and started levitating it in the air with one hand while slowly dismantling it with the other. When the weapon was fully disassembled, he took out the crystal and showed it to the younglings.

"Hard challenges, you will face here today," he said as he began putting his lightsaber back together in one piece.

"Obi-Wan explain to them the rules you should, before into the cave they go."

"Of course, Master," he said with a slight bow. He jumped up on a rock and clapped twice to gain everybody's attention. "Okay younglings listen up. On the other side of that wall is a cave full of kyber crystals, but remember only one crystal is yours. When we melt the entrance to the cave you will have a limited amount of time to get your crystal and get out, because the entrance will freeze again, leaving you trapped in the cave for one rotation. Does anybody have any questions?"

A human boy raised his hand. "How do we know which crystal is ours?"

"There's really no way I can tell you that. You'll simply know that it's yours." He looked around to see if anybody else raised an arm. "Since there are no more questions we'll begin. Master Yoda."

Yoda nodded looked up and reached out with the Force. A part of the wall opened up and sunshine shone through it, slowly melting the entrance to the cave. The water evenly flowed down the stairs and spread around the room.

He pointed his hand toward the cave. "If Jedi you are to become, enter the cave you must. Trust yourself and trust each other you must, otherwise fail you will."

Cindo stood there as the other younglings ran into the cave. " _Am I really ready for this?"_ He started doubting himself once again.

"Doubt yourself, you should not. Here you would not be if prepared you weren't," Yoda reassured him. Cindo rolled his eyes internally, annoyed from Yoda reading his thoughts once again, but he was right. He wouldn't be here if he wasn't prepared. He looked down at the ground, let out a deep breath and walked into the cave.

As soon as he entered the cave he was overwhelmed by energy. He could sense the crystals singing songs, all of them calming and peaceful. He wandered the caves for a while getting more and more irritated. In one section of the cave the walls were filled with crystals, but none of them were his, he could sense it. And in the others the walls were barren. A few of the younglings already passed him, going to the exit with crystals in their hands, which infuriated him even more.

After a long time of wandering around the cave he began realizing that he was walking in circles. He let out an agitated growl and punched the wall in a fit of rage. He was looking down at the ground with an expression full of anger with his hand still touching the wall. He then felt that the part of the wall where his hand was began heating up rapidly, so he was forced to pull it back. Interestingly only a small part of the wall was melting, forming a passage. Taking it as a sign from the Force, Cindo recomposed himself and entered. It was a very small and straight corridor made out of ice. As soon as he took a step forward he was overwhelmed by energy once again, but this time it felt much more darker and evil. He could only hear one song that was sinister and dark, the complete opposite of the one he heard on Tython, yet it sounded similar. As he had no other lead he forced himself to go down the path. It lead to a large and empty room. There was a stand in the middle of it, erupting with light and power. Cindo could also see that someone was meditating in front of it. That someone turned out to be the Togruta ghost. She stood up and beckoned him to come closer.

"Welcome," she said, bowing.

He didn't know why she did that, but he bowed back as a sign of respect.

"Did you lead me here?" Cindo asked.

"No. It was the Force," a different voice said. Cindo looked over his shoulder and spotted the other ghost walking towards him. She positioned herself next to the Togruta.

"Why did it lead me here?" he asked with a raised brow.

"To find out the truth and to begin your training," the Togruta said.

"Whenever you're ready we'll explain everything that we can," the Human told him.

"I'm ready," Cindo answered right after she finished talking.

The ghosts looked at each other and he could see smiles erupting from under their hoods.

"Let's begin then. Do you know who we are?" the Togruta asked.

"Well I know that she is the Barsen'thor from the Old Republic era, but I have no idea who you are," Cindo said truthfully.

The Human chuckled. "Well then we shall introduce ourselves. I'm Keira Galician, former Barsen'thor and council member of the Jedi order" she said, "And I am Myria Galician, known formerly as Darth Nox of the Dark council," the Togruta followed up, as they pulled down their hoods. Keira had long dark hair that ran past her shoulders, blue eyes and cut marks on the lower left side of her face. Myria had a very pale orange skin color, with white facial markings going across her eyes and another marking on her chin going up to her bottom lip. She also had bright red eyes with shades of orange. Everything pointed to her being corrupted by the dark side.

Cindo's jaw dropped. "Wait, wait, wait… You're my ancestors? What sort of relation do you have?" The questions just kept lining up in his head.

"We're sisters," Keira answered.

"Twins in fact," Myria added.

"I don't understand. How are you twins if you don't have any features of the other race and also how did one of you become a Jedi and the other a Sith?" he asked, clearly overwhelmed and confused by the truth.

"It's nothing complicated really it's just how biology works, although there is only a very slim chance of it happening as it did to us," Keira said. She knew that Cindo had many questions that he wanted answered. "I see that you have a lot of questions so I'll give you as many answers as I can. Our parents were killed by pirates when we were children. I was sent to the Jedi and she was sent to the Sith. And eventually after a sequence of many events that are not important we became part of our respective councils. After war broke out between the Empire and the Republic we were sent to here to seize the planet. We eventually met and dueled. We hadn't figured out that we were sisters since I thought she was dead and she thought I was dead, but the Force revealed the truth to us. We stopped fighting and began talking, and eventually we formed a new order; The Wardens."

After a brief pause Cindo asked, "How is it that I'm able to see you? Even if you become one with the Force it's impossible to live on in the physical realm."

"The Force gave us the task of teaching you. We are tasked with making you into a Warden," Myria said.

Cindo was shocked. He understood that they were teaching him, but turning him into something that he didn't know existed and didn't know anything about? He wasn't going to do it with no information.

"What are these so called Wardens?" he asked, intrigued.

"The Wardens are an order created by me and Keira. We created it because we both saw flaws in the Sith and the Jedi and we wanted to solve them, but nobody listened to us, so we left and created The Order of the Wardens, our objective being to develop a third way of interpreting the Force," Myria explained.

"What does it mean to be a Warden?" he asked.

"Wardens are force-users who see themselves for what they could be. Powerful individuals who have the means to change the galaxy for good and not living by a code that limits them from successfully doing what is right," Keira stated.

"But aren't the Jedi the same? We live by a code that makes us be compassionate, helpful and humble," Cindo exclaimed.

"I used to think that the Jedi were good as well. But that changed through time. I saw what they really were. Robots that had no feelings, no goals in life, no reason to exist but to protect the Republic. I was not willing to put away my feelings and humanity, so I left," Keira explained.

Cindo looked at Myria, "And what happened to you?"

"The Sith teach you that hatred and mindless killing is the true path to power. Oh, how wrong they were. I never once killed an innocent, while they murdered families for entertainment. I knew compassion, they only knew chaos. I was forced into killing my Masters to survive. I ended up in a great place of power, the Dark council. I thought I could change things for the better, not only for the Sith but for the Empire as well. But through time nothing changed, the killing and chaos between the Sith only grew and I decided to leave and change my life," Myria said with a sad tone, clearly experiencing pain while talking about her past.

"You mentioned something about a third way of interpreting the Force."

"Yes, I did. There are only two ways to use the Force, the light and the dark. The Jedi and Sith have chosen only to embrace one, but we embrace both. We are compassionate, humble, but we don't push away our feelings that's what separates us from the Jedi. We don't shut the people we care about out of our lives. Love, family, friends they all give us reasons to be better and improve. But we also use our darker emotions to grant us power, not take control of us. Anger gives us the drive and power we need to last longer in fights, grief motivates us to win," Myria continued explaining.

"I understand. But what will it take for me to become a Warden?" he asked.

"You will have to leave your old life behind. You will abandon your Jedi ways and your friends. You will travel to our sacred temple and train as a Warden. Then you will be released upon the galaxy to maintain peace and order or train new members," Keira said.

He shivered. He couldn't just abandon everything he knew. "I won't do it," he said determinedly.

"Then you choose a life of no emotion and purpose. The Jedi order will fall if you stay, we've foreseen it. We've foreseen your death, the death of your friends and everybody else you care about," Myria told him.

That statement made shivers go down Cindo's spine. "Then show me what happens," he said coldly. He wanted to see if they were manipulating him into doing something he would regret.

"Are you sure you want to see this?" Keira asked him. He nodded in response. They looked at each other with worried looks. They turned to the wall and extended their hands. The ground began lightly shaking as a some sort of gateway started to appear on a wall. Cindo could hear screams emerging from it, but the gateway itself was gray. Cindo turned his head and looked up at them with a scared glance.

"Go. We will be right behind you," Myria reassured him. They walked through the gateway.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: A Dark Future (26 BBY)

 _It was pure chaos. Fire burning down the temple, blaster bolts flying around everywhere, ligtsabers swinging around wildly, people dying everywhere. It was a scene unlike any Cindo has seen before. Everywhere he looked he saw death. He could only sense darkness._

" _H-How is this possible?" he asked in a shocked manner, observing the battle. The Jedi were fighting soldiers wearing white armor with blue markings. He immediately thought of the soldiers he saw in his other vision from the forest planet. But something was different. When he was on the forest planet he could sense many vastly different force signatures but this time he only felt one, it appeared as if all of the soldiers were the same person._

" _This is the future of the Jedi order. We have seen this vision many times, it never ended differently. The Jedi lost every time. But there was a very rare instance where the result was different," Myria said, calmly observing the battle._

" _So, this is an instance where I…" he said before being cut off by Keira, "You don't leave the order and train as a Warden, yes."_

" _Where am I then?" he asked them._

" _You should come around that corner right about now," Keira said. She was right. Cindo's future self ran around the corner and past them with a group of younglings. He noticed that he was much taller, was wearing simple brown colored robes and had a blue lightsaber in his hand and he also had a Padawan braid. Cindo was about to get up and follow the group, but he was stopped by Myria. He looked up at her._

" _You may want to see this before we move on," she said with a sad face, pointing at where the group came from a couple of moments ago. Ahsoka, Razy and Kyle ran around the corner. He tried to get a good look at them but couldn't as a hooded man landed in front of him with a blue lightsaber in his hand, blocking their path. The three of them ignited their lightsabers and charged the man. Razy was the fastest and swung first, but the man blocked his swing and used the Force to push him away. Ahsoka then jumped at him and he moved to the side and Force pushed her away, throwing her into Razy. Kyle attempted to properly duel the man, but he proved to be too quick for him, as he easily disarmed him and proceeded to cut off his head. Cindo's jaw dropped._

 _Cindo's eyes started watering. He felt helpless as he could only watch as the man picked up an unconscious Razy. Ahsoka attempted to kick him, but he grabbed her lag and smashed her against the floor. He reignited his lightsaber and impaled Razy._

" _You monster!" Ahsoka yelled at him as she got up on her feet. Cindo spotted that her eyes were slowly turning yellow. She was losing herself to the dark side. She ran at him and started mindlessly swinging. They exchanged a couple of blows, when the man caught her arm and twisted it at a painful angle. Ahsoka didn't have time to cry out in pain as the man proceeded to cut off her arm and then putting his lightsaber through her mid-section. "You failed me for the last time," the man said in her ear, before letting go of her, making her lifeless body drop to the ground._

" _Usually they put up more of a fight," Myria said mostly to herself. Keira nudged her with her shoulder._

 _Cindo began sobbing. "If you want to we can leave this vision," Keira said._

 _He calmed himself, took a deep breath and looked up at them. "I want to see what happens next." They nodded and headed of in the direction of where his future self lead the group of younglings._

 _It turned out he led them to the council chamber. He peaked around the corner and all seemed clear so he walked out and closed the door behind him, leaving the younglings to try and find a safe way out for all of them, but it wasn't meant to be. As soon as he closed the door and took a few steps the hooded man turned the corner, his lightsaber ignited and ran straight at Cindo. He ignited his blue blade and met his in a blade lock. He was losing, so he pushed the man away with the help of the force. The man only slightly stumbled backwards and went back on the offensive as soon as he recovered. This time they exchanged a flurry of swings so fast that Cindo could barely comprehend what they were doing. The man proved to be too skilled and fast and managed to graze future Cindo's left thigh. He stumbled backwards clumsily, almost falling over a pile of debris. He kept walking backwards as the man kept coming at him and swinging at him with all his power. He managed to block the swings but it was apparent that he was running out of energy. The man unleashed his rage and started wildly striking, forcing Cindo's lightsaber out of his hands and cutting into him from his right shoulder all the way down to his hips. The man turned off his lightsaber and kicked him into a pile of burning debris. He then walked back to the council chambers door and opened them. The only things Cindo could hear after the man entered the room were crying, screaming and children begging for mercy._

Cindo woke up in the cold Ilum cave. He was sweaty and breathing heavily. He got up into a sitting position, backed up to the wall and leaned on it with his back.

"How is that possible? How could the Jedi fall so easily?" he asked himself.

"They were betrayed. None of them saw it coming," Myria replied simply with cold eyes.

After a while of silence Cindo stood up and walked up to them. "I made my decision. I want to be a warden."

"Then pull out your commlink," Keira said. Cindo obliged. He reached into his backpack and brought out his commlink. He held it out for here to take it but she just swept and arm in front of it and it made a few beeps and turned green. Cindo put it back in his backpack. "What did you do?"

"Coordinates. When you build your lightsabers find a way to get a ship and come to those coordinates. We'll be waiting for you there. Until then," Keira said. She bowed and disappeared.

"And why are you still here?" Cindo asked Myria curiously.

"I'm here to make sure you don't forget to take your crystal and also pick up that satchel there. It should have all of the components you'll need to build your lightsaber," she answered.

"But I'm supposed to find the parts myself on the Crucible," Cindo told her.

"The lightsabers you'll need will require some specific components you won't find there," she explained to him. Cindo walked over to the podium and took the shining crystal. The melody and the shining that the crystal was erupting stopped.

" _Oh, not this again,"_ he said to himself irritably. Then he picked up the satchel and checked his chronometer. His eyes widened. The entrance to the cave was about freeze over any minute now. He ran.

* * *

Master Yoda, Kenobi and the other younglings were waiting outside. The younglings chattered nervously as almost the whole entrance was frozen and there was no sign of Cindo anywhere. Yoda was still sitting on the same rock as when they arrived and Kenobi was standing next to him, hands behind his back.

Ahsoka was nervously pacing around. "That's it! I'm going in to find Cindo!" she declared, but she was stopped by Yoda's cane.

He let out a silent giggle. "More trust in your friend you should have." And as if right on cue, loud footsteps began coming out of the cave. Cindo slid across the ground and stood up, the entrance fully freezing after he did so.

"Not a moment too soon Cindo," Obi-Wan said with a smile. His smile dropped when he sensed that something displeased him. "Is something wrong?"

Cindo walked up to them and pulled the crystal out of his backpack.

"Another lifeless crystal? Maybe you haven't found the right one?" Obi-Wan said.

"No. The right one it is. Sense it, I do. Maybe connected to the other crystal it is?" Master Yoda said, stroking his chin.

"I left the other crystal back in my quarters on Coruscant," Cindo told them.

"Then build your lightsaber there you will."


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: A New Beginning (26-25 BBY)

(26 BBY) The lightsaber. The weapon of the Jedi and Sith and now apparently a group called the Wardens as well. Cindo didn't know what to make of them. They seemed like Jedi, but they also partly adopted the Sith philosophy and twisted it in a way that it appeared good. He still had doubts about becoming a Warden but if it was the only way to save the people he cared for he would do it. He realized something. He finally figured out the big difference between the Jedi and Wardens. The Jedi never went as far it was needed to complete a mission and have long term effects on the galaxy, they didn't fight for anything but the Republic, blindly following its ideals and turning a blind eye to corruption in the senate. They forbade attachments. No love, no emotion. After thinking about it, it wasn't the life he wanted.

"Hey, are you alright?" a girly voice said, shaking him softly. He awakened from his daze and found Ahsoka standing in front of him with her newly built lightsaber on her belt. She went for a simple, silver colored cylindrical design.

" _I wonder how my lightsabers are gonna look like,"_ he thought to himself, being so drawn in by the lightsaber that he forgot who was standing there.

"Are you in there?" she asked, knocking lightly on his head. He finally escaped his thoughts and looked at her. "Yeah, I'm here. I was just thinking about something. What's up?"

She detached her lightsaber from her belt and ignited it. The blade emitted a green color. She slowly waved it through the air. "So, what do you think?"

"Looks cool," Cindo replied unenthusiastically. He looked back down and tried to lose himself in his thoughts again, but he got interrupted. "Is something wrong?" she asked, but she got no response. She tried looking for something to grab his attention with. She noticed that he there was a satchel next to him, which he didn't bring with him to Ilum. "What's in there?" she asked pointing at it. " _What is in there?"_ Cindo thought. He knew that there were some special lightsaber parts, but he never actually looked at them. He opened it and started putting the things inside next to him on the bench he was sitting on. There were just some light-yellow crystals and some dark-grey parts made out of a metal he has never seen.

"Where did you get all of these things? They seem rare," she asked him.

He quickly made up an excuse. "I just managed to gather these things over the years."

"Oh…" Ahsoka said in a disappointed tone, expecting an interesting story. Cindo spotted Master Kenobi walking past the door. "Master Kenobi!" he shouted. The Jedi Knight turned on his heels and stepped into the doorway. "How may I help you Cindo?"

"How long until we get back to Coruscant?" Cindo asked.

"We should be emerging out of hyperspace any minute now," he answered. "Anything else I can help you with?" he added. "No, Master." He nodded and left went back on his way to wherever he was headed.

* * *

The Crucible landed in one of the many hangars of the Jedi temple on Coruscant. The children emerged from the ship all running in random directions, trying to show their friends their new weapons. Cindo casually made his way to his room. He closed and locked to the door behind him. He closed the shaders in order to make the room darker. He was more focused that way.

He placed the parts from the satchel down in the middle of the room the crystal he found on Ilum with them. It began silently playing the darker melody again. Cindo could also sense something else. He closed his eyes and focused on the force energy in the room. He could hear the overly positive song of the other crystal. The two songs sounded similar, but with the added light and dark undertones. He stood up and pulled back a drawer in his desk, opening it. He pulled the other crystal out of it and he could hear the song change immediately. The overly positive and dark tones started neutralizing and some of them even disappearing completely. The closer he got with the other crystal the brighter they both glowed. He put it on the ground right next to the other one so that they touched. Upon touching a faint flash of light came out of the crystals. The song was in perfect balance. No dark or overly joyous parts, just pure harmony. It was calming.

Cindo got down on his knees. He observed some of his fellow younglings when they were building their lightsabers and he also listened to the lessons Professor Huyang and Obi-Wan gave them about lightsaber construction, so he had a good idea how to go about doing it. He was supposed to make an image in his head with the parts and then let the force do the rest. He gave all of the parts one last look before he closed his eyes and made an image of what his lightsabers will look like. He extended both of his hands, palms up and he could hear some of the parts assembling and he could also feel warmth, not psychologically speaking, but actual warmth, which turned into immense heat soon after. He could hear sizzling, but he pressed on. When he thought that he heard the last part of the lightsabers lock into place he opened his eyes and was met by amazement and disappointment at the same time. It appeared to be a double-bladed lightsaber instead of two actual sabers, but it's design was beautiful. The saber's base was the matte and rough to the touch dark grey metal, with slightly less dark gray handle with the same texture and beautiful yellow engraved patterns that ran all throughout the dark gray parts of the lightsaber. He took the levitating lightsaber and started inspecting it more closely. He noticed two activation buttons instead of just one, so he pressed them both at the same time. It made a clicking noise and the saber fell apart into two symmetrical handles. Just when he was about to activate them somebody knocked on his door. He set them down on the table and went to open the door. Razy awaited him on the other side with glaring eyes.

"Hey, Cindo. Ahsoka and Kyle just showed me their lightsabers and they told me that you were still building yours so I came to check up on you," he said as quickly as he could, barely containing his excitement.

"I just finished constructing them. Wanna see?" he asked Razy, but he already knew what the answer was going to be so he turned around and started walking towards his table before Razy answered.

"Hell yeah! What color are they?" he asked tugging at Cindo's shirt like a child; well he was a child.

"Don't know, haven't used them yet, so you'll be the first to see them alongside me," Cindo said as he picked up his lightsabers. He rolled them around in his hands and inspected them once again for a few moments before finally activating the one in his right hand. The room lit up in blue. But it wasn't the regular blue of a Jedi lightsaber. It was a very, very light shade, with a barely visible, slightly silvery outline on the edges. It was even a lighter blue than Razy and he was Pantoran.

Then Cindo looked to his other hand and pressed the other button. This time a the blade was hot orange, it looked as if a clean stream of lava ran through it. Razy's jaw dropped. "Oh my…" were the only words he could muster as the unique colors filled up the walls of the room. He deactivated the sabers and looked down at them with a smile. Razy began pulling his arm. "You have to show these to everybody else come on, if we're quick they'll still be in the living quarters. Cindo nodded and they ran towards the youngling quarters so he could show off his lightsabers.

* * *

(25 BBY) He knew escaping wouldn't be easy. The Jedi wouldn't let him go, and it wasn't like he had anywhere to go anyway. It took way longer than expected to make up a plan that would work. Well it was the preparation that took the longest time to properly complete. He took extra flying classes whenever he could and he snuck out of his room at night to memorize patrol routes taken by the temple guards. It all lead up to this night and on his thirteenth birthday nonetheless. If he stayed he would begin his Padawan trials tomorrow, but he knew that the force had other plans for him.

He was standing in his quarters observing the busy Coruscant traffic through his windows. It was a long way between him and the hangar, where there was hopefully a shuttle. He went over the plan in his head one last time, before sighing, closing the shutters and leaving the room with all of his possessions in a bag he had slung over his shoulder.

The hangar was eight halls away. The first three were empty, but the fourth one was the one where he encountered a patrol of two guards. He avoided them easily by hiding behind one of the many pillars in the hall. He was still on time as he saw two guards turn the corner as soon as he entered the next hall. The same thing happened in the last few halls. He was hiding behind a bench in the hall directly opposite of the hangar door. There was a guard standing right beside it. He looked around trying to see if there was anything to distract him with. He noticed a porcelain bowl on one of the stands and used the force to knock it over. The guard naturally went to investigate and Cindo entered the hangar. He quickly looked around the hall from the doorway and upon not immediately seeing anything, closed the door before the guard came back.

He entered one of the Jedi shuttles and started preparing it for takeoff. He checked if all of the systems were working before running to the forcefield controls and turning them off. He ran back to the shuttle but before he was able to get up the ramp the door opened. The guard spotted him. "Stop right there. The use of shuttles is prohibited for younglings unless they are under the supervision of a Padawan or a Jedi of higher ranking. Who authorized this?" the guard demanded slowly walking towards him.

Cindo not finding an answer that could save him, threw a box full of supplies at him. The box hit his head and knocked him out. The guards that were close by probably heard the ruckus and were on their way so Cindo ran into the ship, closed the ramp and took off.

Once the adrenaline stopped pumping he sank into his chair. " _It's for the best,"_ he told himself. He entered the coordinates that Keira gave him into the navicomputer. The destination came up empty. The only thing it said was Wild Space, close to the Unknown Regions. Cindo's hear sank. _"How is this possible? The coordinates are probably wrong,_ " he thought. He entered them again and the same thing came up. _"Well… There's no going back now."_ He pulled a lever and was thrusted into hyperspace.

The path was long but he finally emerged out of hyperspace. Opposed to his thoughts there was something at those coordinates. A bunch of debris from ships. He carefully maneuvered around them and when he spotted the planet he was overwhelmed by the amount of force energy it was producing. And as opposed to any other planet he has been on the force felt perfectly balanced. The large blue ball with small masses of land reflected in his eyes. He had arrived at his destination, Odessen.


	11. Chapter 10

_I'm really sorry about the poor quality of the last few chapters. I went through the first couple of chapters multiple times before posting them, but school didn't allow me to do so for the last few ones. But since I'm done with exams I have the ability to read through everything and change/fix things, so you can expect better written chapters from now on. I took the rou_ _te of quantity over quality and I can assure you that I'll never repeat that mistake again._

* * *

Chapter 10: The First of a New Generation, Part 1 (25-20 BBY)

(25 BBY) Immediately upon entering the atmosphere of the planet, which looked very similar to Tython from space, Cindo initialized a scan which would tell him if the atmosphere was breathable. He flew around for a while, checking for any man-made structures, but the only thing he could see were trees and more trees. The planet really was similar to Tython in almost every aspect. It had lots of forests, mountains and lakes. He was flying around for hours before he finally spotted something. A large circular structure with an upside down bowl shaped roof that was built into a cliffside.

" _This has to be the place,"_ he thought to himself as he flew in circles trying to see if there was a place where he could land the shuttle. There was a small landing area in front of the structure, so he headed for it and landed. He turned off the ship and cautiously ran down the ramp of the shuttle with his right hand on his lightsaber. He observed the area, while slowly walking towards the entrance of the structure. Chunks of the platform he landed on were missing, boxes were scattered all around the area and… there were scorch marks everywhere. He also noticed two man-made cave entrances but they were blocked off by debris.

" _Help…"_ a barely audible voice called out. Cindo flinched and ignited his lightsaber. He looked around and didn't see anything. He deactivated it and put it back on his belt. He let out a deep breath to calm himself from the sudden shock and searched the area with the force for the origin of the voice. While searching around with the force he could hear very faint screams and cries for help and mercy. He sensed something close to the entrance, it wasn't alive but it was something. He walked to the entrance and glanced around the area close to the door. He focused once again, this time extending his hand and calling upon the force. He slowly went over the area from left to right. He stopped at a stack of boxes, sensing the whatever it was. He crouched and quietly moved towards the boxes with a saber in hand. When he peaked the corner he was greeted by the sight of an empty set of armor laying on the floor. He decided to inspect it more closely. It was unlike any armor he had seen before. It bared close resemblance to some special forces trooper armor from the Old Republic era but it seemed like it was made from a different material. This particular set was painted black, with yellow stripes running across the hands, body and legs. The voices began screaming again, this time more loudly. Cindo placed his hand on the armor's chest and closed his eyes, letting the force do the rest of the work.

When he was back at the temple he asked Master Yoda why he could see images of the past when he focused on the necklace, when he still had it. Yoda explained to him that this power was called telemetry and that very few Jedi possessed it. The thought of Yoda sent a tear down his eye. He was gone for only a couple of hours and he already missed all of them, but he had to do this, because he knew what the alternative was. Slowly he could feel the force dragging him into a vision.

* * *

(Coruscant, Jedi Temple) "Why did he escape?" Anakin asked his master.

"I have no clue my Padawan," Obi-Wan answered inspecting the are where the shuttle was the night before. He and his padawan Anakin Skywalker were assigned to lead an investigation about Cindo's escape. The only clue they found was a shattered bowl.

"Didn't the guard notice anything?" His padawan was keen on asking easily answerable questions. "What do you think?" Obi-Wan asked rhetorically looking at him from a crouched position with a raised brow.

"He had to have heard the ships engines," Anakin said. Kenobi face palmed. "Of course he heard the engines."

"Then why didn't he do anything or sound the alarm?" Anakin asked.

"He did try to do something, but he got knocked out by the box you're sitting on," Kenobi explained calmly. Anakin quickly stood up. "Oh."

"Knight Kenobi how is the investigation progressing?" a deep voice said. "Not very well I'm afraid Master Windu. We know what happened but we don't know why he did it," Kenobi explained, shaking his head. "Did you manage to get a lock on the tracking beacon?" he added.

Master Windu frowned. "I'm afraid that the beacon was either disabled or destroyed. So, whatever he's doing he doesn't want us anywhere near him."

Anakin sighed "First Derel seemingly vanishes and now Cindo."

"There's been a hidden darkness inside Derel, which we didn't uncover fast enough and it almost costed a younglings life. We thought we healed him, but it appears as though he only hid it and looked for a time to escape. But Cindo… I don't know what to think of it. He was on his way to become a padawan, my padawan to be exact and he just picked up and left. He's so young yet he fought the dark side and defeated it both mentally and physically, he couldn't have succumbed to it. Those ghosts may have made him insane, or forced him to do this," Windu told them.

"I don't believe it was the ghosts. He told me they always helped him whenever he was in a bad situation," Kenobi said, stroking his chin.

"His trust may have been misplaced," Windu questioned.

"Maybe, but we can't be certain. It seems like we'll just have to wait it out, hope that he returns to us or that he activates the beacon again."

* * *

 _(Odessen, vision) It was a warzone. Warships, fighters and bombers filled the skies with lasers and the ground with bombs, troops on the ground were shooting in every which direction and the humming of lightsabers could be heard from everywhere. Cindo was standing in the spot where the trooper's armor was. The boxes were still in the same place, but there were those black and yellow colored troopers behind them taking cover and shooting back at someone. Cindo stood up and immediately his jaw dropped. He could see Imperial and Republic troopers working together killing all of the soldiers wearing black armor. Usually he would be happy to see them working together, but this time something felt off. Before he could ponder his thoughts the sound of two transport ships caught his attention. The black armored soldiers defeated the Imperial and Republic troops, but were greeted by even more of them when the ships landed. After the troops exited, two Jedi and two Sith each emerging from their own transports also joined the fight. The troopers were no match for them and were soon cut down. The doors of the structure opened. Five figures all wearing different gray and white or gray and black armor and masks stepped out onto the battlefield._

" _Stop this at once!" the figure in the middle of the five demanded. They sounded surprised by the attack._

" _Your days of peacekeeping are over. We've come to destroy the Alliance and you'll be buried with it," the SIth said taking a step forward and igniting his crimson colored blade._

" _We outnumber you. This is your last chance, surrender." the figure once again said calmly. The Sith merely started laughing in response. "You outnumber us? Really?" And just as if on que three more transport ships emerged from around the corner of the cliff. They landed and dropped off more troopers, Sith and Jedi, too many for Cindo to count._

" _You see on any normal day we would take you in alive, but you have ruined everything for us and in return we will destroy you and everything you've built. There will be no more Alliance," one of the Jedi said coldly. Cindo's eyes widened. Did he just hear that correctly? A Jedi said that?_

" _Then you give us no choice," the masked figure said, igniting their lightsaber the others following suit. His vision began to fade, as the man who was wearing the armor slowly let out his last breath._

* * *

(Odessen, Alliance base) Cindo took a few steps back and sat down, his whole body aching. Telemetry was a useful power, but it was incredibly draining. "W-what happened here?" he asked himself loudly.

"We can explain that," a soft feminine voice said. Cindo jumped to his feet and turned on his heels. Standing there in front of him were two women, wearing armor colored in different shades of gray. It was Keira and Myria, but they were different. The right side of Keira's face had burn marks and she was wearing one of those Sith face masks that covered the nose, mouth and part of the bottom jaw. She was wearing a, ribbed light gray shirt and black armor that went from her chest up to both of her shoulders. She had a beautiful black-yellow-light gray cape that went from her waist down to just above the floor. Her leggings were armored in the thigh, knee, shin and calf areas, same with the shoes. Myria's face looked the same as when he first saw her the only difference being that her eyes weren't dark red anymore, but they were orange. It seemed that she managed to heal her dark side corruption a bit. Her whole upper body was encased in very light and thin gray armor, with a large shoulder pauldron on her right shoulder and a smaller one on the left. She wore open fingered gloves and the same cape as Keira, only that hers was gray. Her whole lower body was armored with very light armor as well ( _I wanted to add images for reference but the site doesn't allow me to post links)_.

"W-why do you look different?" Cindo asked them. "We have that ability. We aren't alive so we can change our looks to how we looked at any other point in our lives. We decided to appear to you as Wardens. This is how we looked like in the final years of our lives," Myria explained to him.

"I had a vision. Sith and Jedi were fighting to destroy something called the alliance. I never heard of the alliance," Cindo said.

"Before we can explain what the alliance was, we need to explain how and why it formed, so prepare yourself for another story," Keira told him. She lifted a box with the force and settled it down next to Cindo. "Sit."

"The Emiper and Republic were on the brink of extinction. A new and powerful empire appeared out of nowhere. It's fleet larger than both the Empire and the Republic combined. They obliterated everything in their path. I went in search of this new threat but was captured by the emperor and his children, transported to their capital world called Zakuul and frozen in stasis for five years. Myria saved me and together we escaped this new Zakuulan empire. Their fleet was deemed invincible but we found the only weapon that could destroy it, the Gravestone. A treaty was signed between the three powers, basically destroying the Republic's and Empire's power to resist Zakuul. So, we took the Gravestone to this planet and started the Alliance. It consisted of Republic citizens and Imperials, whether they were Jedi or Sith, defecting soldiers or volunteers, we took in everyone who wanted to resist Zakuul. We managed to take control of a part of their automated fleet and turned it against them. It was a bloody fight but at the end we managed to succeed and kill the emperor and his children, but not before the fleet and the Gravestone were destroyed. Without those we were left exposed and the Republic and the Empire decided that it was best if they destroyed us," Keira told him, her expression grim.

"But wouldn't the Jedi support your cause. They are peacekeepers themselves. Why would they destroy someone with the same goal?" Cindo asked. He still didn't want to believe that the Jedi played a part in the destruction of the alliance.

"The Jedi feared us even more than they feared Sith. We took their jobs and did what was necessary to win. Their influence and funding within the Republic dropped massively. It's safe to say that they didn't take a liking to it, so they decided to ally with the Empire. But they knew the people wouldn't support them, so they framed us for killing higher ups in the hope of gaining support. It succeeded. And without our fleet we were defenseless. We held out for as long as we could, but there were too many. A lot of people died that day. And to imagine all of this could have been avoided…" she trailed off looking into the distance, to a forest still bearing the scars of battle.

Cindo still didn't want to believe it, but he sensed that she wasn't lying. "But the order has changed right?" he asked, hoping for a good answer.

"Yes, it has. That event transpired thousands of years ago and all of the records about the event have been destroyed, but since then they have changed for the better. But even right now an outside darkness is looming over the order, waiting for a chance to strike and destroy it. You've seen it for yourself in that vision. The Jedi are too weak to stop whatever is coming, so it's up to you to ensure the survival of the Jedi," Myria said coldly, with a supportive arm on Keira's shoulder.

"But the Jedi helped destroy you, why would you help them?" Cindo asked. At this point he didn't understand anything.

"Because that's the life objective of a Warden. To keep peace in the galaxy and help its people by any means necessary. We aren't going to forget our ways like they did," Myria told him. She let go of Keira and kneeled down to Cindo's level. "You see those mountains over there," she said pointing at a chain of mountains in the distance. Cindo nodded. "Fly over those and you'll see a large clearing. Land there and then head up the stairs to the top of the mountain. That is your first task. We'll wait for you there."

"Ok. I'll see you there then." He ran to his ship and up the ramp and soon he was already flying towards the mountains.


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11: The First of a New Generation, Part 2 (25-20 BBY)

(25 BBY, Odessen) Broken down military installations, destroyed outposts, burned forests, all caused by the Republic and Empire three millennia ago, but the effects of their devastating campaign could still be seen. Cindo was flying over these areas as he approached the mountain range. His heart sank whenever he flew past another area of scorched ground. He could not only see the destruction but he could sense and hear it. The screams, the death, it all resonated through the force and it made him feel uneasy. But he powered through and soon he was already flying over the mountains, getting closer and closer to his destination.

* * *

(Serenno, Dooku's palace) A dark, cold room in the center of a large palace. This was the place where Count Dooku, former Jedi Master conducted his meetings with his master, Sidious. Dooku was kneeling on the floor waiting for the holo transmission to start. A frail old man with slumped shoulders and with a hood over his head appeared in the hologram.

"Master," Dooku said, kneeling down and looking at the ground.

"Lord Tyranus. How are the subjects progressing?" Sidious asked, his hands clasped.

"All of them were strong in the dark side of the force as you said my lord. But some of them proved to be incompetent…" Dooku said carefully, trying to find the correct words to not displease his master.

"Ah, incompetent you say. Were they properly dealt with?" Sidious said, smiling.

"Yes, I disposed of them just as you asked. Only the strongest will survive I can assure you my master," Dooku told him.

"Very good. Are there any promising candidates?"

"Yes, there are a few, but if I was to expose one I would have to say Derel. He shows no mercy and he is incredibly strong with the force. I might make him my personal apprentice with your approval of course," Dooku said, still kneeling and looking at the ground. Sidious considered it for a few moments before speaking.

"That is an excellent idea. Keep the rest that survive as personal assassins. Everything is almost in place." Sidious chuckled viciously. "Contact me when their training is done."

"Of course, my master," Dooku said as he got up and bowed. The hologram disappeared and Dooku let out a deep breath of relief before leaving the room and locking it.

* * *

(Odessen) Cindo landed, turned off the engines and ran down the ramp once more. He was in a large clearing with stone pathways leading in different directions. Large pieces of mossy rock were scattered across the area, which was surrounded by forest and mountains. A broken sign, with barely eligible writing laid down on the ground, overgrown with grass. Cindo kneeled down and cleared away the moss and grass. He then read the sign. "Sparring area, hunting grounds, pathway to the shrine – that's probably the place where I need to go."

Accompanying Cindo along the way to the shrine was an eerie silence. He felt like something was watching him from the forest which was so thick that the whole area that was covered with it was in a shadow, with only a few streaks of light penetrating through. He stopped before the stairs and looked up. It was a long way to the top of the mountain, but at least the path looked safe enough to just walk all the way up to the snowy peak.

He was about halfway up the mountain. The area was more and more barren with every step he took and the stairway itself was getting smaller. No more pine trees and vegetation, only rocks and more rocks and soon to be snow. But at least ascending the mountain gave him time to think once again if this was the right choice. But he was rudely interrupted by a vicious growl. Cindo immediately turned his attention to finding the source of the growl. He grabbed his lightsabers and carefully looked around the entire area.

Just as he was about to put his lightsabers back on his belt a very large cat looking creature with white fur jumped at him from behind a rock. He rolled out of the way and ignited his lightsabers. He waited for the beast to attack again. And so it did. It jumped at him with incredible speed, trying to claw him to death, but he used the force to push it upwards, evading its claws by mere centimeters. It missed its landing and it rolled across the ground and fell down the mountain. He was breathing heavily even after that short encounter because of the thin mountain air. Before he could start moving he heard a cry of pain through the force. He went to the edge and looked over it only to see a large pool of red blood not far down. Multiple sharp rocks could be seen penetrating through its whole body, yet it was still alive.

He carefully maneuvered down to the beast and the pool of blood. The beast was breathing heavily, visible clouds of water vaper coming out of its mouth. It looked at him with its blue predator eyes in a way Cindo could only interpret as scared. He put his hand on its neck area and ignited a lightsaber in his other hand. "I'm sorry," he said before closing his eyes and ending the beast's suffering, but not before it let out a yowl. Cindo was shaking through that whole endeavor. He never killed a living being before. It was a hard first experience, since he didn't only kill the beast, he made it suffer, although not intentionally, before it died and he was feeling even worse for it.

* * *

(Odessen, Warden shrine) Cindo was freezing, to put it lightly. The last third of the way was snowy and he had no extra clothing to put on, so he was freezing. He had his arms crossed over his chest, his head pointed at the ground, trying to make himself as small as possible to keep warm. A large surge of force energy made him look up. He was almost there. A small grin stretched across his face, but it was immediately put down when the next gust of wind blew over him.

The shrine was a large stone circle with pillars full of engravings of ancient text. The pillars were connected by a stone ring. Cindo finally stepped over the last step and desperately leaned on the pillar. He attempted to read some of the text, but he couldn't understand a single letter so he entered. As soon as he entered the open shrine the temperature rose and a large pyre appeared in the middle of the circle, with Myria and Keira standing on each side. Cindo also noticed another thing, they had their lightsabers with them and they were very similar to his. Myria was carrying a double-bladed saber and Keira had two sabers clipped to her belt. Cindo stood there by the entrance at a loss as to what to do.

"Come to us," Myria said. Her voice somehow echoed in a completely open area. Cindo obliged and walked up to them.

"Kneel," Keira demanded with the same echoey feature in her voice. Cindo kneeled and waited for further instructions.

"Every order must have a code to live by. The Jedi and Sith codes limit its members but ours frees them. So, repeat after us," Myria said staring down at him with an emotionless glare.

"Flowing through all, there is balance," they said in unison. He repeated after them.

"There is no meaning to a life without passion, yet I will not let passion destroy me." He repeated.

"Power is gained through darkness, yet I will not let darkness control me." He repeated.

"Peace is gained through light, yet I will not let light obstruct me." He repeated.

"There is freedom in life, there is purpose in death." He repeated.

"The Force is all things and I am the Force," they finally said, and he repeated.

"You may now rise initiate," Keira said. Cindo looked up at them for a moment and then stood up.

"Your training begins tomorrow. You may rest until then," Myria said. They bowed to him and he bowed back respectfully.

* * *

 _This was a bit of a short one since I wanted to separate Cindo's initiation from his actual training._


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12: The First of a New Generation, Part 3 (25-20 BBY)

(25 BBY, Odessen)"Get up," Myria demanded. Cindo flinched and fell out of the bed, hitting the cold metal floor of his shuttle's only quarters. "What are you doing here?" Cindo asked as he was struggling to get up.

"I said your training begins tomorrow. Tomorrow's now," she explained. Cindo checked his chronometer. It was almost midday. The trek up and down the mountain drained him more than he cared to admit. He opened a small cupboard next to the bed and attempted to pull out his cloak, before getting interrupted.

"You won't need that. We're going hunting," she said, leaning on the door frame. Cindo put his cloak back into the drawer and made his way to the door. He walked right into Myria and seeing as he was still a bit dazed from being woken up, he fell to the ground.

He shook his head. "Wait! How did I hit you? You're a ghost." She merely laughed and shook her head in response. "Our connection to this planet and you is stronger than you might think. Other people might not be able to see or hear us, but us being bound to you and the connection we have means that you can physically interact with us here. It will make it so it's easier to train you."

"Uh-huh," was the only response Cindo could muster. "So, can you maybe move out of the way please?" he continued.

"Sure." She moved out of the door frame and exited the ship. Cindo followed her outside and stretched. It was a beautiful although very hot day. There were no clouds in the sky and he could hear wildlife in the forest.

He yawned before saying, "Where are we going?" Myria pointed towards a path that lead straight into the forest. "Follow the path. I'll be waiting for you," she said before disappearing. " _Great… more walking,"_ Cindo said to himself as he began walking down the stone pathway. The forest was full of force energy. He could sense lifeforms, large and small, observing him as he went past.

Myria was waiting for him at an abandoned training area in the middle of the forest. It appeared to have had practice dummies and obstacles back when it was still whole. "How nice of you to join me. Before we start I'm just going to say that we'll skip all of the basic things and go straight to improving your force abilities and combat skills. Are you prepared for your first lesson?" she said leaning on a tree. Cindo nodded in response and she approached him.

"As you know all living things are surrounded by the force. That gives us the ability to sense people and creatures around us," she said, before slightly frowning and looking around the forest. "This forest is filled to the brim with wildlife – from small animals like rabbits and squirrels to deer and sleen, but every habitat has a predator. In this case it's the shade stalkers – reptilian beasts with black thick scaly hides who have the ability to turn themselves invisible, so they're great exercise for you to practice your awareness. There are at least two watching us right now, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. You will find one, simple," she added.

"Great. Now I'm supposed to kill things I can't see," said Cindo with an exasperated tone. "Nobody said anything about killing. You'll attempt to control it with the force," she said calmly as if it was a simple task. "Control it? I can't even see it!" Cindo questioned. "You don't have to see with your eyes when you have the force. I know you can sense life around you in general, everybody can do that, but you must learn how to focus on one force signature. Remember your task – find one of them and control it," she explained. "Well, here goes nothing," Cindo sighed before going deeper into the shadowy forest.

He was trekking through the peaceful woods for a while, observing and sensing the trees, plants and animals around him. They were afraid him as was expected, but there was something else close to him that didn't show any signs of fear, only rage. He stopped and used the force to heighten his senses. He could hear all of the steps that the animals around him took, most of them soft and quiet. If they were close enough he could even hear their breathing which was slow and calm except for one which was deep and loud. He could sense and hear a shade stalker sneaking up on him. Just as the beast jumped he ducked, avoiding it at the last second. When it landed it turned around and attempted to attack him again but was unable to move forward. Cindo was pushing back the beast which at this point revealed itself. Myria's description of the beast was on point. And talking about Myria she just appeared behind a tree and walked up to Cindo, who had his hands stretched out trying to keep it away.

"Not even a scratch. That's a surprise," she said calmly standing next to him with her hands behind her back. She appeared completely calm even as the beast hissed violently at them. "Influence it. Calm it," she added.

"Calm Down!" Cindo demanded pressuring it with the force. The shade stalker only hissed back viciously.

"It can sense your fear. You have to calm down. Think of it as talking to a friend instead of an angry lizard that wants to kill you," Myria recommended. Cindo took a deep breath and released his physical hold of the beast, rather focusing on its brain. "Calm down," he said with a calm tone. It stopped trying to attack him but instead just tilted its head as if it was confused.

"Tell it to go back to its nest," Myria told him. Cindo closed his eyes and reached further into its brain with the force. "Go back to where you came from," he said, once again in a calm tone. The beast regarded him for a few more moments before simply walking back into the depths of the forest, slowly turning invisible as if nothing happened. Cindo let go of his grip on it and put his knees on the legs, inhaling rapidly and a few drops of sweat going down his face.

"Well done. This will become one of your daily routines among other exercises and lessons. It will become easier to do the more you do it. But a warning - it only works on the weak-minded," she explained to him. He straightened his back and looked up, his breathing slowly becoming normal. "Why couldn't we start with like a rabbit or something similar to that?"

She put a hand on his shoulder. "We don't have that much time and you still have so much to learn. These are only the basics, you'll have to progress rapidly if you want to be ready on time," she explained to him.

"When you're ready head back to the ship. Keira will be waiting for you there." Cindo wanted to say something but when he turned his head she was already gone. He let out an exasperated sigh and started making his way back towards the ship with slumped shoulders.

* * *

Keira's lesson was pretty simple. It was just normal sparring practice but with lightsabers. Cindo didn't understand the point of it, he already learned all of this in his time with the Jedi, so when he was sitting on the ramp of the ship observing the stars he asked them "What was the point of todays lessons? I already did all of this with the Jedi." He couldn't see them but he knew they would appear and answer his questions.

"Because you must perfect the basics before you get on to the harder things. Today was just an evaluation day," Myria suddenly appearing. She sat on a tree trunk next to the ramp with Keira by her side.

"So, what can I expect for tomorrow and the future?" Cindo asked curiously. "Well, if you ask. Your training will be the same as any Warden's before you. You will wake up just as the sun rises over the lowest mountain. The morning routine consists of endurance and strength exercises, then after your done you work on the spiritual side of yourself, by meditating and after that you can do whatever you want until midday. After that we will assign you tasks and help you train your abilities," Keira explained. "Sounds pretty simple. How long will the whole training process take?" Cindo asked. "Anywhere from three to five years," Keira said simply. His eyes widened.

"Three to five years!" he said in shock, but he quickly came to the realization that Jedi training and being a Padawan would take even longer. Five years without his friends, cozy temple quarters and properly made food. The thought of not being able to have these things for such a long period of time made him nervous, but he made his choice and he wasn't going to back out. He knew what the future held if he did.

The three of them sat in silence for a few awkward moments before Cindo kept on going with his questions. "I'm really intrigued by the code. Can you explain the part about the light and dark again?"

"Of course," Myria said. She got up and started pacing back and forth before the ramp with her hands clasped behind her back. "Power is gained through darkness, yet I will not let darkness control me. The dark side of the force is the path to ultimate power, but the individual who joins the dark side because of their emotions often loses himself. The dark side has the power to turn the friendliest of people into the ugliest of monsters. Those who lost themselves often turned to slaughtering everything they came across. We learned how to control darkness, how to use the powers and the abilities it grants to full effect. Of course, you must find your own darkness within you through emotions such as hate, fear and grief for example, to unlock these abilities. Through time and practice the use of let's say force lightning will become second nature and you won't have to risk dipping into your emotions."

"When do I start learning about the dark side?" asked Cindo with an intrigued tone and a raised brow.

"When you are ready. You will first have to go through countless hours of exercise, meditation and combat training to be mentally and physically prepared to challenge the dark side and wield its powers. That's why your training currently looks like normal Jedi training," Myria continued explaining. "Makes sense," Cindo responded with his hands supporting his face.

Then all of the sudden Keira stood up and positioned herself next to Myria. "Allow me to explain the other part sister. Peace is gained through light, yet I will not let light obstruct me. This ties more in with the Jedi than the actual force itself. It's sort of a critique. Many Jedi had the ability to end conflict with a simple swing of a saber, but their own shortsightedness made them delay the suffering, not end it. They would rather bring a person that caused a genocide, making hundreds if not millions of people suffer, to prison than to end him there for his crimes. Some people are past redeeming, some even past being thrown in prison, but the Jedi are too caught up in following their own stupid ancient code. I used to believe in second chances for people like them as well, but letting them live always came back to bite me. I could have ended the suffering of an incredible amount of people, but I let some ancient code limit the good I could do," she said the last part hesitantly, her experiences with such things must have scarred her. Cindo looked at her sympathetically. "I helped found this order to do good, not have the illusion of doing good. We don't hesitate if the person is beyond redeeming, that's the difference between us and them. We end conflict, they prolong it," she added. She then went out of sight behind the ship, showing such anger on the way that it made Cindo shiver slightly.

Myria sighed and looked down at the ground with her hands on her hips. "She lost many people close to her when she was a Jedi because she was taught about how everyone can be redeemed. Remember if they fight back they are willing to die for what they believe in, so don't give them a chance to talk themselves out of the fate they sealed," she said before quickly walking off, leaving Cindo alone with the peaceful starry night sky.

* * *

(Serenno, Dooku's palace, 24 BBY) The dining hall was of Dooku's palace was brimming with life. Twenty or so influential people were seated at the dining table with Dooku at the helm. Only the best wine was poured and only the best stakes served. It was a celebration of the formation of the Separatist movement. People that were sick of the Republic's corruption and wanted to find an alternative.

"My fellow senators and representatives," Dooku said, standing up right with his back straightened out and holding a glass of wine. "Today is a momentous day for the galaxy. A formation of a new alliance. A new alliance that will not be corrupted and will judge every person and race in the same way. So, I propose a toast to our new alliance," he said holding his glass high and smiling. The other guests stood up and did the same. "To peace and prosperity," he said and the others repeated, drinking their preferred drink of choice after.

As soon as the feast began Dooku's commlink, which he had hidden in his pocket, began buzzing. "Excuse me my friends. There's an urgent matter I need to attend to, but please do begin without me," he said gesturing at the food. The guests began conversing with each other as Dooku stood up and walked out of the dining hall into the longs and beautifully decorated halls of his palace.

"What is it Derel? Can't you see I'm a little busy," the count said, obviously displeased with his timing.

"I'm sorry, my lord. But somebody wishes to speak to you. They requested that I ready the hologram in your 'special transmission' room," Derel said.

Dooku became a bit nervous all of the sudden. "Ah, yes, of course. I will be right there," he said before looking around if anybody was looking at him. It wouldn't be out of the question if the Republic sent spies to see what was happening so he was as careful as he could be.

And soon he was already kneeling before the hologram of his master. Sidious of course didn't let Dooku tell Derel that he had a master. It was a safety precaution that had to be taken.

"Lord Tyranus," Sidious said in his deep and slightly shaky voice. "Have you been evading me? I haven't gotten a status report in over a month," he added. Dooku swallowed nervously. He had reasons, but he didn't know if his master would be satisfied by them.

"I'm sorry, Master, but I have been off-world gathering allies for a while. Everything is proceeding as planned. The alliance has been formed and I have already secured a deal with the Techno Union about the droid factories. They will begin constructing them as soon as the credits come through," Dooku reported.

"Very good, very good indeed. And how is Derel's training progressing?" Sidious asked in an intrigued fashion. "He has shown to be a very capable apprentice. He will be very valuable in the fight against the Republic."

"And have you seen any potential candidates that could lead the army?" Sidious asked.

"San Hill from the banking clan proposed a Kaleesh warlord by the name of Grievous. He is said to be ruthless and unforgiving. He might be the person we're looking for," Dooku told his master.

"If he turns out to be what you claim he can be, then you will train him in lightsaber combat and give him control of the droid army. And do not grow too fond of Derel my apprentice, he is only a pawn in our game as is everyone else," Sidious said in a sinister tone.

"Of course, my Master," he said before the holo-transmission ended.


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13: The First of a New Generation, Part 4 (25-20 BBY)

(23 BBY, Odessen) It's been exactly two years since CIndo joined the Wardens as an initiate, which also in turn meant that it was his fifteenth birthday. He was sitting one the bank of a river looking down at the reflection. He changed a lot during the years and also learned many new things. Everything from increasing his attunement with the force and with that learning and increasing the power of his force abilities, he also adopted a much calmer personality from the after effects of hundreds upon hundreds of hours of meditation and he also grew up considerably. He was now standing proudly at 185 centimeters with a muscular and sturdy body from all the exercise and combat practice. Some of his Togruta features disappeared completely, such as his very slightly orange skin and his limbs being a bit longer than normal. But he kept one feature which was pretty distinct, he had the teeth of a Togruta. They were incredibly sharp and he had fangs. Life wasn't all about lessons and practice. Myria and Keira taught him how to survive in the wilds and they were actually quite helpful with teaching him how to interact with different types of people and how to read them correctly. He would spend the nights thinking about all the lessons he was given about what it meant to be a Warden. He came to the conclusion that they were mostly like Jedi in what their goal was, but they had the power to achieve it and they weren't forbidden to form attachments. While the Jedi cowered from the dark, the Wardens embraced and learned to control it, opening a door to a whole new host of abilities which the Jedi saw too dangerous to use.

"Cindo," Myria's voice said from behind him. He jumped slightly and turned around while sitting. "Yes?"

"Come with me," She told him before walking off. Cindo in response jumped up on his feet and ran behind her. They stopped close to the ship by a small sealed doorway. Myria got down on her knees. After a few moments the mountain began shaking slightly and the door opened revealing a hallway.

"Stay close," she said and Cindo obliged, following her into the depths of the mountain. "You have grown considerably since your arrival. Not only physically but mentally as well," she said walking forwards with her hands clasped behind her back. "I have you and Keira to thank for it," Cindo responded. Myria smirked. "We only pushed you in the right direction. You did most of the evolving yourself.

After a short awkward silence Cindo spoke up. "Where are we going anyway?" Myria then stopped all of the sudden and swept her hand across the corridor, igniting a torch each time her hand passed one, revealing a giant circular door. "The vault." Cindo observed the door for a few moments before Myria spoke. "Open it."

Cindo nodded, took a step forward and extended his left hand. He envisioned the door opening in his head. He could hear the door mechanism begin to move. He didn't lose focus and kept up opening the giant vault door. When he opened his eyes he could see a glimpse of the door rolling to the right. They entered the giant room.

When Cindo passed the door, he noticed that the door itself was multiple meters thick and made out of metal. His jaw dropped as soon as he looked around the giant room. Multiple statues of hooded figures littered the walls of the room and there were many massive pillars running along the left and right side to prevent the room from caving in. The room itself was mostly empty, but there were some boxes and things that appeared to be some sort of droid storage units. Myria and now Keira were waiting by the boxes. "So, why am I here?" he asked observing the room while he was walking towards them. "It's time for you to get your Warden armor. And we also thought it was time to get rid of those nearly too small clothes you're wearing," Keira told him.

"Usually you would craft your own armor with zakuulan steel, but since we don't have any at our disposal you'll just have to pick whatever you want to wear from these boxes," Myria told him gesturing at the boxes. Cindo picked a box and upon opening it his expression dulled. "It just looks like normal clothing," he said with an apparent disappointed tone.

"These are no normal clothes," Myria said. "They have three layers. Two layers of fiber with zakuulan steel synthwoven in between. It's incredibly light, flexible and offers at least twice the protection that any other material of that diameter could."

After a few long moments of picking his new look he was finally done. He chose a black shirt with short sleeves, dark gray pants, dark gray and thinly armored boots, which reached up to a little bit below his knee and fingerless gloves. He also chose to wear a thick and unzipped gray trench coat (imagine the coat being similar to Tobias Beckett's but it's a darker gray), that was almost touching the ground. It also sported a hood which was pretty unusual.

"So, what do you think?" he asked them while turning around to show off his new attire. Keira put her hands on her hips and let out a short laugh. "Well, it certainly is inconspicuous."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Cindo retorted with a smile. "Can I go and train now. I wanna see if I can even move in this thing," he added while fiddling around with his coat. "Don't be so fast. There's one more thing that every Warden possesses," Myria said as she used the force to levitate a much smaller box right into Cindo's hand. Upon contact the box fell apart, uncovering a helmet. The helmet was painted matte dark gray. The visor was just a straight line, so the wearer could see. "Cool…" Cindo said, inspecting the helmet.

* * *

(Coruscant, Jedi Temple) Ahsoka was sitting in Cindo's room meditating. Although he was gone for two years she still hadn't given up hope on him returning. Every couple of weeks she would just go into his room and be there for a while either meditating or remembering the times when he was there. Nobody was expecting him to run away. He never showed any signs of disillusionment with the order or anything else that would prompt him to leave. He just got up, took everything and disappeared.

"You need to accept that he's gone," a voice called out from the door. She turned around and spotted Razy leaning on the doorframe. "What?" she asked as if she hadn't heard him. "I know it's hard for you and it's been hard for us as well, but you need to move on."

"Move on? How can you just move on? He was like a brother to me, to all of us actually and you just move on as if he didn't exist?" she said as she was pointing a finger at him threateningly. Razy approached her as a response with Kyle entering after him. Kyle sighed. "It's been two years Ahsoka. He's either dead or he just moved on."

"But he was thirteen when he left! Where could he have gone? He has nobody out there!" Ahsoka screamed at them. "As much as none of us like this situation we can't let it obstruct us. We're Jedi, remember? There is no emotion, there is peace and besides your trials will begin soon," Kyle said. He has developed into quite a smart kid as opposed to the lazy person he was earlier on. Ahsoka sighed in defeat and wiped a tear from her eye. "Okay, you're right. He probably found a place where he's happier." She looked around the room for a few moments before adding, "Let's get out of here." The boys nodded and led her out of the room. She put her hand on the door of her friend's quarters one last time before following Razy and Kyle to wherever they were going.

* * *

(Odessen) After getting his new attire and doing a bit of combat practice to see if it was a viable outfit, he went to his usual meditation spot on top of a hill not far from the ship. He was on his knees surrounded by large stones embedded with carvings. Each stone had one line of the code and a short explanation for it written on it.

The morning sun was lighting up Cindo's facial features as he began his meditation. Every time he had meditate before he felt hope and he also felt as if he wasn't alone, but today there was something different. He didn't feel hope and he felt completely alone. It made him feel uneasy, it was as if he didn't exist. Nonetheless he pushed that feeling to the side and focused on his meditation.y

 _some time later…_

Cindo was lying in the grass across from his ship just looking at the sky and thinking about the weird feeling he was getting during his meditation. The forest was full of life as always and if he really focused he could hear the water in the river flowing.

Then all of a sudden a shadow blocked out the sun. "Enjoying yourself I see," Myria said smiling with her hands on her hips. "Just enjoying the afternoon sun," he stated as he moved into a sitting position. "What's on the agenda today?" he asked. "Get up and you'll see," she answered taking a few steps back.

"Today you'll begin your training for double-bladed sabers. Put your sabers together," she said as Cindo got up on his feet. He remembered the day when he built his lightsaber. It was two sabers built into one hilt. He took both of his sabers from his belt and inspected them. Then he carefully put them together, a click confirming that he did it correctly. He ignited the lightsaber and the orange and blue blade each came out of one side with the usual low frequency hiss.

"You have almost perfected your normal technique, but it's never a liability to learn a new one. Your twin saber technique might be strong in duels and against small groups of enemies but the double-bladed lightsaber allows you to easily deflect a large amount of bolts and to dispatch large groups of foes, as it relies on wide swings and a lot of body movement," she explained before unclipping her lightsaber from her belt. She ignited it as well, making a very silent pop sound before it started emitting a hiss. Her double-bladed lightsaber was the same orange as one of his. Cindo remembered that Keir carried two blades that were the same color as his other blade.

"Are these your crystals I'm using?" he asked. Myria smiled and nodded. "Yes, they are. I'm glad you came to that conclusion without asking us."

She sighed irritably. "We're ghosts, remember…" Cindo facepalmed in response, "I don't know how I always manage to forget that." After a few moments of silence Myria spoke up, "Are you ready to begin?" Cindo gave her a thumbs up and they began their long and rigorous training.

* * *

(22 BBY, Senate building, Coruscant) "I understand your concerns chancellor, but I can guarantee you that Senator Amidala is well protected," Master Windu said as he was walking alongside Chancellor Palpatine down the long and well decorated hallways of the Senate building. "And what does this protection consist off, if I may ask Master Jedi?" Palpatine asked as he was respectfully greeting the the people that were passing by with nods and gestures.

"We have assigned Knight Kenobi and his Padawan, Skywalker to take her to Naboo and protect her until the dust settles," Windu explained. "Only two Jedi? I thought the life of a Senator was worth more," Palpatine said in a disappointed manner. "I can assure you that Kenobi is the best we can offer in the means of protection," Windu reassured him. "And what about Skywalker?" Palpatine asked. "He is a bit out of the ordinary, but he gets the job done."

"Then I really don't have anything to worry about," Palpatine said with a smile. They arrived to the door of Palpatine's chambers. "Thank for escorting me Master Windu. I would like to continue our talk, but duty calls," he said, bowing slightly. "Of course, chancellor," Windu said, bowing as well.

* * *

"Master Windu, your presence has been requested in the council chambers immediately," a Temple Guard said as soon as Windu exited the speeder. "I'll be there right away."

Windu practically ran through the temple to get to the council chamber as fast as he could. When he entered almost all of the other council members were there and those that weren't were broadcasting themselves over a hologram. He jumped in his seat. "What's the situation?" Master Fisto answered, "Skywalker is contacting us with a distress call."

"Let's hear what he has to say then," Windu said. He pressed a few buttons on his chair and the hologram of a nervous looking Anakin popped up in the middle of the room, sitting on a pilot seat.

"What is it Skywalker?" Windu asked. "There's been a turn of events. Obi-Wan has been captured," Anakin answered. Some of the council members gasped and the others had troubling looks on their faces. "What happened?" Master Plo said.

"He went to investigate something on Geonosis. Before he was captured he said something about some people pledging their armies to Dooku and something about a droid factory," Anakin said. An uneasy feeling flowed through Windu and the other council members.

"We will deal with Count Dooku. The most important thing for you, Anakin, is to stay where you are. Protect the Senator at all costs. That is your prioity," Windu said sternly.

"Understood, Master" Anakin responded before cutting the transmission. Yoda who was quiet the whole time and lost in thought finally said, "Dark times ahead for us, I sense."

* * *

(Odessen, some time later) It was night time on Odessen. Cindo was sitting on the ramp of the ship as usual, cooking a rabbit over a fire. A strong wave of negative force energy passed through him, making him feel slight pain. He could sense suffering beyond any he has ever felt before.

"Did you feel that too?" Cindo asked. Keira appeared before him. "Yes, a major disturbance in the force. Something terrible has happened," she said in an alarmed way.


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14: The First of a New Generation, Part 5 (25-20 BBY)

 _The dark side of the Force is a pathway_ _to unimaginable power, but it also carries a risk far greater than any. Letting yourself get consumed by it was a quick and easy way to power, yet almost always the person who did so was overcome with rage and hatred, causing them to go insane and forget who they were. Many Jedi went down this path and never returned. Master Yoda always said "Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny." Yet Cindo has faced the dark side at the age of five and beaten it. The other Jedi were too weak to control their own dark side except for a few and that's why they taught the younglings to not form attachments and let go of their dark feelings._

(21 BBY, Odessen) " _Meet as in the cave by the waterfall at midnight._ " That sentence echoed through Cindo's head as he was once again sitting on the ramp of the ship just looking at the night sky. There have been many more disturbances after the first one. Something was happening in the galaxy.

Cindo extinguished the fire he had started and made his way eastward towards the waterfall. Various nightlife animals and critters sang songs as he was walking on the pathway through the forest. He could also sense multiple shade stalkers following him, lurking in the shadows. He had his hand on his double-bladed lightsaber, which he was very proficient with after a year of practice, just in case they tried to attack him. But after years of being mind controlled and hunted they learned their lesson, so they kept to the shadows and never attempted anything.

He came across the river and followed it upstream, the noises of frogs and fireflies flying around him kept him entertained during the trip. He arrived at the several dozen meter tall waterfall with the cave under it. The cave entrance was located under the waterfall, a very narrow ledge leading to it. The cave tunnel led to a decently sized inside area, with a large pond in the middle and an altar on the opposite side of it. Myria and Keira awaited him at the slightly elevated altar.

He walked up the few stairs that lead up to the altar "You told me to come here?" It was more of a question than a statement. "Yes. I presume you felt the disturbances that occurred in this past year?" Keira responded.

"Indeed, I have. Something's happening," Cindo said. "But I have no idea what," he added. "I have only felt such disturbances in war time," Myria told him with a sad tone.

"A war?" Cindo asked, stroking his chin. When he left the Jedi and in turn the Republic everything was peaceful. The only real problems were pirates, gangsters and other lowlife and even those were usually not a threat as they were taken care of by the Judicial department or the Jedi. "Yes, a war. That's part of the reason why we called you here," Keir took a short break before saying, "It's time for you to face the dark side of the Force once again." Cindo paled slightly for a second. "A-are you sure I'm ready?"

"Yes," Myria said determinedly. "You have learned at an incredible pace. Faster than any other Warden we have trained. There is also the problem of us running out of time. The Force is telling us that you need to be part of this war," she added. "How do you know the Force is telling you that?" Cindo asked with a raised brow. He knew the Force spoke to them, but he didn't know how.

"It doesn't speak to us in that sense of the word. It gives us visions of the future with you and without you. And right now it is clearly showing us that you need to be part of this conflict," Myria explained. After a brief pause Keira spoke up, "Are you ready to face the dark side?"

"Yes," Cindo answered with a determined nod. "Good… This cave is the only part of this planet where the dark side prevails over the light and it's the other way around in the vault. You will meditate before the altar and it will drag you into some sort of vision where you will face a great challenge," she told him while emphasizing certain things with gestures. "And before you start let me tell you what your goal is. You aren't going into the vision to deny your emotions and repel the dark side, you aren't going there to let the dark side take control of you, you are going in there to control it. Remember, Power is gained through darkness, yet I will not let darkness control me," Myria explained further. Cindo repeated the part of the code in his head before getting down onto his knees and closing his eyes. An aura of light began to grow around him, slowly being corrupted by a dark aura.

* * *

 _Darkness all around. Cindo was standing on top of water. He could see a reflection of red light in the water. It was coming closer and closer. He could see something slowly erupting from the water. A tall man dressed in black, with some sort of console on his chest and a helmet on his head. Cindo recognized the man that was standing in front of him as the man that he saw in his vision where the man called Vader killed a Jedi and took his child._

 _Cindo could hear his deep and slow breathing. "We meet again, Cindo," he said showing no emotion, not even moving a muscle. He held a crimson lightsaber in his right hand. "How do you know me?" Cindo asked, taking his lightsaber from the belt, separating it into two and activating them. "It pains me terribly that you don't remember that day," Vader said. "What are you talking about?" As soon as Cindo was finished asking his question, lightning hit him and he was forced down to the ground. "Let me help you recollect your memory," Vader said, shocking him again with force lightning. The area of water Cindo was looking at began transforming into an image of the burning Jedi temple. He was looking at the vision again. Cindo ran through the corridor with the group of younglings, his three friends running far behind him. The same man wearing a hood over his head jumped down separating them. "Your friends. They were week," he said before shocking Cindo. He screamed in pain his whole body twitching from the electric current going through his nerves. Vader then used the Force to force him to look into the water._

 _The reflection played out like the vision before where the man easily slaughtered his friends. "Y-you were a Jedi… Why would you do this?" he asked and got shocked in response. "They tried to betray the Republic, so I was sent to intervene," he said with an amused tone, shocking Cindo once again. With every shock and every spoken sentence Cindo became angrier and more scared. "Liar!" Cindo yelled at him. He was then caught in a Force choke before being slammed into the ground and forced to look at the vision again. His future self dueled the hooded man and lost. But instead of killing him, Cindo managed to run away. "You ran away from the younglings, leaving me to slaughter all of them. Their deaths were your fault," Vader said looking down at him. "No… no… no," Cindo kept repeating. Vader slowly extended his left hand to shock him again but this time he was the one who was flung away by a powerful jolt of force lightning. "NO!" Cindo yelled as he was shocking the dark lord. Cindo fell to his knees exhausted. He glanced up and saw Vader stand up. "You abandoned your friends in the future if you would have stayed with the Jedi, but what if I told you that they abandoned you?" he taunted. Cindo picked up his sabers, ignited them and got up onto his feet. Vader approached him slowly. Cindo looked at his reflection and saw that his eyes had turned yellow. He couldn't keep his anger contained and so he could feel the dark side attempting to take control of him. Myria's voice rang through his head._ " _You aren't going there to let the dark side take control of you, you are going in there to control it. Remember, power is gained through darkness, yet I will not let darkness control me."_

" _You Jedi were always week. It is logical that your order will fall," Vader kept on taunting. He attempted to swing at Cindo, but a mere centimeter from Cindo's head his hand stopped and he couldn't move it. "What is this?" he said in a bit of a shock. "I'm not like them. I'm not week," Cindo said, before shocking Vader with lightning. He could feel the dark side working with him not against him. Vader stumbled backwards and breathed heavily. As he was recovering he was shocked once again, stumbling further backwards. "Impossible!" the dark lord yelled, before being lifted in the air, gripping at the invisible hands that were strangling him. Cindo dropped him to the ground and stepped before him. "You are the one who's week," he said before putting both of his sabers through Vader. The world began falling apart and soon he was falling into a dark abyss._

* * *

(Geonosis) The initial wave of the assault on Geonosis was chaotic to say the least. Obi-Wan's battalion was forced to land early and create a defensive perimeter out in the middle of the desert while Anakin Skywalker with his Padawan Ahsoka Tano and Jedi Master Mundi were forced to take certain "shortcuts" to randezvous with Kenobi's forces. Both sides suffered immeasurable losses and it was only the first stage of the second battle of Geonosis.

Obi-Wan was giving a briefing about the second stage of the attack, the primary goal of the invasion being destroying the droid factory and capturing Poggle the Lesser. "Our combined forces should be enough to the destroy the shield generator. Anaking you'll need to take a small squad through the shield… Anakin?" Anakin was deep in his thoughts. He felt something in the force, something or someone familiar doing something big enough to create a disturbance. "Anakin are you there?" Kenobi asked again. Anakin shook his head. "Sorry, Master, I just felt some weird disturbance in the Force," he said with a frown. "Me too, Master. Something seems very familiar about it," Ahsoka added. "I felt something as well, but whatever it is, it'll have to wait until after the mission. Focus on the task at hand," Obi-Wan demanded. "Of course, continue," Anakin said gesturing at the holo-projection of the shielded area. Kenobi sighed before continuing.

"As I was saying Anakin, you'll need to take a squad through the shield. As close as you can get to their gun emplacements. From there you will be able to temporarily jam their scanners, so they are unable to target the incoming tanks. Once the tanks knock out the shield Master Mundi can bring the rest of the troops in with the gunships."

"Consider it done, Master," Anakin said with a grin.

* * *

(Odessen) Cindo was laying with his back on the ground when he woke up. "What happened?" he asked as he was slowly getting up. "You did it," Keira said while smiling. "Is it supposed to be this simple?" he asked. "It's far from simple. You have face the dark side before and beaten it, so it wasn't hard for you to control it. Other Wardens had much more trouble and a lot of them gave into the dark side," Keira told him. He got up and walked to the pond in the cave to wash his face. He noticed that he still had yellow eyes when he saw his reflection in the water. "What?" he said in surprise as he jumped back. "Don't worry. Dark side corruption isn't permanent if you aren't exposed to the dark side for longer periods of time. And by a long time I mean years. I'm speaking from experience," said Myria. She was a trusted source of such info as her corruption was far more intense than just Sith eyes. "So, whenever I use the dark side of my Force I'll have Sith eyes is what you're saying?" Cindo asked with a raised brow. "Yup," she responded casually.

"So, how many times will I have to do this before I can effectively use let's say force lightning without feeling certain emotions?" Cindo asked after he washed his face. "None. You'll just have to use your emotions to unlock these abilities and through time and a lot of practice you'll learn how to use them without dark side emotions," Myria explained. "The training is very hard though," she added.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Forgotten (20 BBY)

(Odessen) It was Cindo's big day. The day of his final test to see if he was worthy of becoming a Warden. Myria and Keira have instructed him the night before to meet them outside the secret cave entrance that leads to the vault.

He could feel their presence. "What am I to do?" he asked sitting and inspecting his helmet in his hands, his back leaned on the stone wall which was also the secret door. They appeared in front of him.

"You are to create your dagger. Every Initiate had to pass this test," Myria said. Cindo looked at them with a raised brow. "You haven't mentioned a dagger before."

Keira pulled out her dagger. It wasn't made out of metal and there was dried blood on it. "It was so you couldn't make long term preparations for the test. You have to kill a prime shade stalker and cut out one of its teeth, and you have to do it with only the Force and your hands. Then you will create a dagger out of the tooth and present it to us," Keira explained.

"A dagger really doesn't seem like a practical weapon," Cindo said, looking unamused. In response Myria pulled out her dagger from behind her back as well, hers had even more blood on it. "A dagger has many uses, you would be surprised how many times it can save your life."

"All of your training has led you to this moment. You will have to use all of the force powers you have learned to track and take down a prime shade stalker," Keira proceeded. "And how do I identify it?" Cindo asked, looking down at his helmet. "You'll know, trust me," Keira responded with a smile. "You also said something about tracking it?"

"You can't directly track it. Prime shade stalkers are pack leaders. They are the main defenders of their more fragile opposite gender. You'll have to find and track a female shade stalker back to its den," Keira explained. Cindo pondered something for a few moments before getting up putting his helmet on and his hood over it and after that casually walking into the forest.

It was sometime around the evening when Cindo felt the force signature of a female shade stalker, or at least that's what he hoped he sensed. It was vastly different from the other ones he sensed and was still sensing as they carefully watched him traverse the forest. He followed the signature through the forest for a couple of hours. He was about to give up when it suddenly began moving much faster. He chased after it and was soon standing before a crevice in the mountains that were surrounding the Warden training grounds as he called them. He enhanced his senses by focusing. He could sense many similar signatures to the one he followed and something else, something much larger and more powerful. He took a deep breath underneath his helmet and entered the crevice.

The further he went the more misty the area became. He entered a wide, somewhat circular area which was reeking of decomposing animals. Bones were scattered all around the area of various animals and there were a lot of cubbyholes in the walls, which appeared to be the places where the shade stalkers slept. In the middle of the area was a large pile of bones with a hole in the middle. It was as if something was lying or sleeping there, in fact Cindo could feel something lying there. Something much larger than anything else. He tried to be sneaky, but as soon as he took a step forward the entity jumped up and ran at him. It stopped before him and revealed itself.

A humongous shade stalker the size of five normal ones, with eyes as dark as the night's sky was looking down at him, trying to scare him. Cindo took another step forward in response and the prime shade stalker attempted to bite him, but Cindo managed to slide under its legs. It turned around in the blink of an eye trying to bite him again. This time he used the Force to push its mouth away from him. Cindo kept pushing its head away, but the beast started resisting and slowly his grip was broken. Cindo rolled to the left, barely avoiding its attempt at striking him with its claws. He attempted to circle around it but it swung its tail at him, hitting him in the head, sending him flying into the rock wall, his helmet being flung into another direction. He dropped to his knees, supporting himself with his hands. He managed to zap the beast with a short burst of force lightning disorienting it as it was attempting to lunge at him. It hit the wall instead leaving a large dent in it. It immediately reoriented itself and began searching the area for Cindo. While it was confused Cindo managed to sneak behind a pile of rocks. Unknown to him the beast could hear his breathing. Cindo could sense the danger so he rolled out of the way but not before it managed to claw his face. He cried out in pain touching his right eye. He could still see but the wound was letting out blood, which was running into his eye, blinding him. He needed to finish the duel quickly. He observed that the beast was very strong-willed, so he needed to confuse it or weaken it in some way to be able to effectively use the Force against it. Before he could think of a proper solution it swung its tail at him again. He crouched under it and shocked it with force lightning. It appeared to become more enraged when he did that. It mindlessly charged at him and missed him, stumbling over the rocks. It hissed ferociously at him as it got up and got shocked as a response. Cindo jumped far away with the help of the Force. He positioned himself so that the wall was to his back. He then shocked it again and it ran into the wall. He did that a couple more times before the prime shade stalker began visibly stumbling. He used his left hand to keep shocking it and then his right hand to lift it into the air. It was producing a mixture of squeaks and growls as it was being shocked. Cindo put all of his energy and focus into crushing the beast itself. He began slowly squeezing his right hand together, making its limbs and bones bend and break. He put all of the power he could into the last bit of energy he had left and with a loud pop the beast's neck was broken. Its lifeless body flailed to the ground and all was quiet. Even the Force signatures he was sensing all around him were gone, scared off by the fighting.

After the painstaking job of removing one of its teeth he picked up his mask and headed back to the ship.

The sight of his ship made him as happy as always. It was basically his home at this point. He went into the fresher and hesitantly looked into the mirror. He was lucky that his eye wasn't clawed out. The wound wasn't big enough to require sowing. He let out a sigh of relief before going through the painful process of clearing the wound of dirt and any other materials that might have gotten in there during the fight. The only thing he had available was drinkable water from the river which he put into the ships tank that distributed water across it.

He cleaned the wound and decided to go to sleep. " _This was not a good day,"_ he said in his head as he slowly drifted into sleep.

* * *

The next day he began making his dagger. He sharpened the tooth, created a handle and a sheath for the dagger out of wood. He attached the sheath to the back of his belt. Myria and Keira approached just as he was finishing binding the handle and the tooth with rope. "You certainly look worse for wear," Myria told him grinning with her arms crossed over her chest. "Very funny," he responded as he swung the dagger through the air, checking if it was sturdy enough to use. "Follow us," Keira said seriously and they turned around and began to move towards where the secret entrance to the vault was.

"You have learned many things over the years. You overcame all the challenges and tests with excellence," Keira said as they were walking. She continued after a brief pause, "You are one of the most powerful initiates we have ever had. You have successfully completed your training." They stopped before the entrance. "Kneel," Keira said in a demanding tone. Cindo obliged. "Present your dagger." Cindo pulled the dagger out of the sheath beneath his coat and held it up with both hands. Keira took it while Myria opened the secret entrance. They made their way through the tunnel and entered the vault. They stopped before a stand holding a small and empty stone tablet.

"For completing the final trials, you have earned the right to call yourself a Warden," Myria said. Keira slammed the dagger into the tablet and all of the cracks in the floor, walls, columns and ceiling began to radiate a yellow color that soon disappeared, and the room turned back to normal. Keira gestured towards the dagger, "You may take your dagger. Carry it proudly." Cindo took the dagger. He could feel the Force flowing through it peacefully. The light and dark at balance.

"There is one last thing we want to give you," Myria said with an excited expression on her face. She approached one of the droid storage units and entered a code. The doors of the unit slid open. Cindo's eyes widened. Inside was what appeared to be a fully functioning yellow-black colored HK unit. "Let me present to you, HK-61, the most advanced HK model to date. More precise and deadly than ever before. Our scientists even managed to root out its weird speech pattern and normalized it," Myria said as she typed a few more things into the console. "Put your hand on this scanner," she added as she stepped away, pointing at the scanner next to the terminal. He carefully put his hand on the scanner and let it do its job. The droid twitched and its eyes turned red. The various cables that were attached to it were snapped off by it exiting the chamber.

"HK-61, at your command, Master," the droid said. Cindo eyed the droid from top to bottom with his hands on his hips. "Combat capabilities?" he asked HK. "Proficient in marksmanship, close range combat, hand to hand combat, explosives expert. As opposed to my earlier counterparts I'm also proficient at slicing and conversations," The droid answered.

"Let me guess. Your makers gave you the ability to express a certain level of free will while also being obedient until the end?"

"Precisely," HK said in a satisfied tone and Cindo chuckled in response. " _We will meet you at the ship,"_ Myria said in his head. "List of current available weapons and perform a systems check while you're at it," Cindo demanded. "Current available weapons consist of: a flamethrower, retractable single use rocket launcher, vibroblade. All systems fully operational," HK answered almost immediately. Cindo pointed to the blaster on his back "What about that?"

"Not functional. Depleted cells," HK responded. "Follow me," Cindo said as he began making his way out of the vault. "Of course, Master," HK said enthusiastically following his new master.

"Are you able to perform a ship systems scan?" Cindo said as they were standing outside the ramp. "I am fitted with a scomp link which does allow me to do that. You will have your report in no time, Master," HK said before making his way up the ramp. "And HK…" Cindo began. "Yes, Master?" HK asked. "You don't have to call me master." The droid stood there as if it was doing calculations. "Noted," it said after a few moments before turning and disappearing into the ship.

"He will be a great asset and a friend," a voice coming from behind him said. Cindo turned to address Myria and Keira who were standing behind him. "It seems like a fun droid to be around," Cindo retorted. Myria smiled and nodded in response. "We came here to say goodbye," Keira said with a sad expression. Cindo's smile faded. "Guessing the Force is calling you back." They nodded at the same time. "We have served our purpose," Myria said. "You are a great person and I can tell that you will be a great Warden. Be strong and never lose hope," Keira said. A tear rolled down Cindo's eye. "I won't. Thank you for everything."

"Before we go there is one more thing. This shuttle won't move anywhere. Don't enable the tracker but instead use this frequency with the distress beacon…"

HK finished scanning the ship and prepared a full report. It made its way to the ramp. HK saw Cindo standing there looking as if he was talking to somebody but nobody was there. "Ok. I understand," he could hear Cindo say.

"You know Master, if you have any mental disabilities you may want to tell me because I can try to work around them," HK said. Cindo turned and smiled at him. "Don't worry about it. I was just thinking out loud."

"If you say so. I have prepared a report of the shuttle's status. Do you want to hear the full version or the short and concise one?" HK asked. "The short one please," Cindo said. "It won't fly," HK responded.

Cindo rolled his eyes. "Oh really?" he said in a sarcastic tone. "You wanted the short version," HK said as it shrugged.

"What's working, what isn't?" Cindo said. "Most of the ship is fine except for the ignition plugs and unless there are any shops nearby we are stranded," HK told him. "Don't worry. I already have a plan," Cindo reassured him. "You do?"

* * *

(Coruscant, Jedi Temple) Anakin was pacing back and forth in front of the council chamber door. "Can you calm down?" Ahsoka asked him. "I'm perfectly calm Snips. I just don't like standing still," he answered with a grin. Ahsoka only sighed and rolled her eyes in response.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," a familiar and friendly voice called out from down the corridor. It was Obi-Wan followed by his Padawan Kyle Oncino. "And I thought I was supposed to be the late one," Anakin said to Ahsoka. "What took you so long old man?" he asked teasingly with a grin. "Ah, you know the usual. Lessons and such…" Obi-Wan answered while smiling.

"Oh, I feel sorry for you man," he said to Kyle. "Come on, Anakin. My lessons aren't that boring," Obi-Wan retorted. Anakin only responded by raising his brow and smirking. Ahsoka let out a laugh which she muffled by putting her hands in front of her mouth. "You set a great example you know that?" Obi-Wan asked rhetorically. "I try my best."

Kyle jumped into the conversation. "Masters, if I may ask. What's this about?" Kenobi's face adopted a serious expression. "I don't know. They only told me that they had to urgently speak to us about something," he said, before opening the door and gesturing them to enter. Obi-Wan and Anakin stopped in the middle of the room with their Padawans slightly behind them. All of the council members looked as if they were thinking about something specific.

"Master Kenobi, Knight Skywalker, Padawans Tano and Oncino. Do you know why we called you here today?" Master Windu said. "No, Master Windu," Obi-Wan responded. Windu nodded slightly. "Well then let me enlighten you on the current situation. There has been another one of those millennia old distress calls. We tracked this one to a planet we didn't know existed, out in Wild Space," he explained.

"And how is this connected to us, Master?" Anakin asked. "You should know the answer yourself, but let me help you refresh your memory. Mortis," he explained with his ever-emotionless face. "Impossible. All of the Mortis gods are dead," Anakin said.

"It may be something else. But since the circumstances around this situation are similar to Mortis we are sending you, Master Kenobi, your Padawans and a small squad of clones as we cannot spare the resources to send out a full cruiser of clones," Windu said.

"And when do we leave?" Obi-Wan asked. "Whenever you are ready. Your ship is already being prepared. Pick out the clones you want to take and you can be on your way," Windu stated. The four of them bowed and left the room.

* * *

(Serenno, Count Dooku's palace) "You wished to speak with me, Master," Dooku said, once again kneeling in the dark room.

"Our little friend at the Jedi Temple told me of a very interesting mission being undertaken by Skywalker and Kenobi," Sidious began. "An ancient distress call is being sent out from Wild Space. I will provide you with the coordinates and you shall send Derel and a few of your assassins to that location with a full battalion of droids to intercept Skywalker and the others," Sidious continued with his hands clasped.

"But my Lord, Derel is already on another assignment…" Dooku began before being cut off by Sidious. "You dare to defy me Tyranus?" he said calmly. "No, my Lord."


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16: A Different Approach (20 BBY)

(Hyperspace) Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka Tano and Kyle Oncino were situated on an Eta-class shuttle flying through hyperspace. The clones they picked out were sent to the location ahead of them onboard a Consular-class space cruiser. The picked out squad consisted of the best the 501st could offer and a special non-clone squad which was a part of the 501st called Viper squad.

"This doesn't make any sense," Anakin said under his breath. He was sitting in the pilot's seat looking out of the front viewport with his hands crossed across his chest. "Another age old distress call, not long after the first one. It can't be the Mortis gods since they're dead so what is it?" he continued.

Obi-Wan was sitting next to him in his copilot chair while being in his usual thoughtful pose, which consisted of him stroking his bear with one hand while supporting that hand with his other hand. "Frankly, I have no idea. A planet appearing out of nowhere is unheard of."

Kyle jumped out of his seat and leaned on Obi-Wan's. "Did we try analyzing the signal to see if we can find the name of this distress signal," he said. "No, why would we do that?" Obi-Wan questioned. "If we identify the name of the signal, maybe we could find out what group of people sent it and what kind of danger they're in," Kyle stated. "That is actually a good idea. But sadly we don't have a list of distress signals we could compare," Obi-Wan. Kyle picked up the datapad on his chair and put it in Obi-Wan's hand.

"I downloaded a list of distress calls before we left, but I didn't have the time to analyze it. If we transfer the files to the ship's computer we should be able to compare the signals," Kyle explained. "The ship does have a copy of the signal right?" he asked Anakin. "It should," he answered.

While they were talking Ahsoka stood up and left the cockpit. She sensed that something was off. She made a thorough search of the ship. She checked every compartment and room, but she found nothing, yet the strange feeling didn't go away. She was on her way back to the cockpit when she heard a sound of something hitting the floor beneath her. She lifted the lid to where all of the wiring for the ship and the air filtering system were located and ignited one of her sabers. "Stop!" a voice yelled from the compartment. Razy's head popped out and his black eyes met hers. "You aren't supposed to be here," Ahsoka said silently looking towards the cockpit door.

"I know, but I really wanted to join you guys. Being Windu's Padawan is boring. The only thing I do is practice all day. I've been on one mission in a year," he explained. Ahsoka extended her hand and helped him up. "And when were you going to reveal yourself if I didn't find you?" she asked him. He shrugged. "Probably when you landed."

She sighed. "Come with me," she said, before going towards the cockpit. Razy followed her carefully.

"Look who I found," Ahsoka said with a smirk on her face and her hands on her hips. Razy's head peeked out from her right shoulder. He then slowly revealed himself fully. "Raz'yel what are you doing here?" Kenobi asked with a raised brow. Razy was slightly shaking from fear. "I-I umm… I wanted to join you," he said.

"Sure," Anakin said in response while fiddling around with the computer. "Did your Master approve of this?" Obi-Wan asked Razy. "N-n-no," he said while looking at the ground. Being shorter and younger than everyone didn't help his confidence. "Well then I will have to make up a good excuse for you. Take a seat," Kenobi said gesturing at the last empty chair in the cockpit. Razy's face lit up. "Are you serious?" Kenobi smirked. "Of course I am. It's too late to turn around anyway," he answered before sighing and turning back towards Anakin and Kyle who were using the computer to compare the distress call the council gave them to all of the documented Republic and Jedi distress calls. "Did you find anything yet?" Kenobi asked.

Kyle pressed a few buttons on his datapad and unplugged it from the computer. "It found a match. It's called the alliance call." Anakin frowned in reponse. "Well that doesn't answer anything. It only adds more questions."

* * *

(Odessen's orbit) The Jedi shuttle emerged from hyperspace. It was greeted by the space cruiser and a planet that resembled Tython. "Looks like a cool place," Razy commented.

"Come in Republic space cruiser C988," Obi-Wan said into the comms device. "This is corporal Haste sir. We're glad you arrived safely," the other ship responded. "Corporal, where is Rex?" Anakin asked. "Rex and the others are already down at the surface and have set up a perimeter. Transmitting coordinates."

A light on one of the consoles on the right side started blinking green. "Coordinates received," Obi-Wan said. "Good luck down there sirs. We will be up here and act as a medium between Coruscant and you. We've never been so far out so communications to Coruscant with any mobile comms station won't be possible."

"Understood, corporal. Skywalker out," Anakin said pressing a button which ended the transmission. The travelled the rest of the way in silence.

* * *

(Odessen) Cindo and HK were trying to locate an area where a ship landed and left about an hour ago. They trekked through the forest carefully, trying not to alert their visitors. They came across a campsite in a small clearing. There were a lot of supply boxes and around five tents. They stayed in the tree line, silently maneuvering around the campsite trying to find its inhabitants.

"How do I always get the first guard," a person, his voice slightly altered by something said. "Oh, zip it Hardcase and enjoy nature," another man with the same voice said. "Yeah, Hardcase. Life isn't all about fighting," the same voice said. Cindo didn't know if a person was talking to himself or if it was just a group of people using the same voice modulator.

Quietly, Cindo made his way to the back side of a tent and beckoned HK to join him. Cindo peeked around the corner. A shiver went down his spine. It was the same soldiers he saw in the vision back on Ilum, where they destroyed the Jedi Temple. He was about to jump out and kill them, but he sensed something different about them. He could still sense that they had the same force signature, but something was different. He could also sense differences about them. He slowly hid back behind the corner while the soldiers started laughing about something and commanded HK to go back into the forest.

"Are these your friends that you were talking about?" HK asked silently. "No, there's something wrong. Could you see anybody else in the camp?" Cindo responded scouting the camp from behind a tree. "There was someone else. His armor bore the same colors as theirs but it was a different design," HK reported. Cindo pondered something for a few seconds.

"It'll be dark in a couple of minutes," he stated. "I have a plan…"

* * *

"Sir, what are you looking at if I may ask?" Kix asked Viper squads lieutenant Fisk. "I have a feeling that something is watching us," he responded, scanning the tree line with his eyes. Kix stood by him for a few moments, not hearing or seeing anything. "Well, sir if it interests you we're almost finished preparing dinner," Kix said. "I'll join you shortly," Fisk said, not taking his eyes off the tree line. Kix nodded and just as soon as he turned something bit him by the leg and started dragging him into the forest. He tried to grab his rifle, but he was too late. Just as he was about to be dragged into the bushes a bright light shined in front of him and the invisible beast that was dragging him revealed itself. It was a large dark lizard looking animal. Fisk was pointing his DC-17m's flashlight attachment at it, making it hiss in anger and retreat into the forest.

Kix ran back to the camp, put on his helmet and picked up his rifle. "Let's start assembling the floodlights. And contact Captain Rex about these things," Fisk said as he started moving towards the pile of boxes. Hardcase and Tup ran around the corner from one of the tents nearly bumping into Fisk. "What happened?" Tup asked.

"Some giant lizard thing tried to eat me. Come on we let's help the Lieutenant assemble the floodlights," Kix said.

 _A few minutes later…_

It was about midnight and all of the floodlights were placed in a way that all of the approaches to the camp were covered. "Did you report these things to Captain Rex?" Fisk asked Kix. "Yes, sir. They haven't encountered any yet."

"Good. Let's hope it stays that way." Just as Fisk finished saying that, a crack could be heard and one of the floodlights turned off. A scream could be heard coming from the other side of the camp. Fisk and Kix looked at each other for a moment before raising their weapons and moving towards the source of the sound. They peeked around the corner of one of the tents and found Hardcase laying on the ground with 2 DC-15S blaster carbines scattered across the floor.

"Hardcase, what happened?" Kix asked the man who was sitting on the ground, with a hand on his helmet. "I don't know. Everything was calm and then all of the sudden something hit me on the head and something else dragged Tup into the forest," he explained, taking short pauses between sentences.

"Something else? What do you mean something else," Fisk said as he was checking the back sides of the tents if something was still hiding there. "I-I Don't know. Everything happened so fast I c-couldn't…" before he was able to finish a large cloud of fire erupted in the forest. "Are you able to walk?" Kix asked Hardcase.

"Yeah, yeah, just let me get some revenge," he said as he clumsily got up, almost falling back down a couple of times while doing so. Kix picked up and handed him his blaster. They followed Fisk into the forest. They came across the area where the fireball came from and spotted a small campfire. They carefully approached the fire while checking every possible angle.

All of the sudden Kix was levitated off the ground and flung into a tree, knocking him out instantly. Fisk turned around only to see a droid uncloaking behind him and punching him in the head, before going back into its cloaked state. He attempted to fire a few shots but was unable to do so. He couldn't even move a muscle. A man dressed in a coat with a hood over his head which was concealed by a helmet dropped down from a tree in front of him. He slowly ran a hand in front of his face. He felt as if all energy left him and collapsed on the ground. The last thing he heard was, "Let's take them to the ship," a voice muffled by some sort of headwear that covered their face said before everything went dark.

 _A few minutes later…_

"Three clones and a commando don't just disappear," Anakin said irritably. They had just landed on Odessen a minute before and Rex was waiting for him with the bad news. "I give you my best guess at what happened, sir. Follow me," Rex said, before putting his helmet on and moving towards the area where the first signs of struggle appeared to take place. A broken floodlight and a DC-15S blaster carbine were laying on the ground. "No drag marks or blood or anything," Anakin said. Rex nodded and started moving towards the forest.

A large scorch mark, a couple of meters long stretched across the ground. "A flamethrower?" Anakin asked as he looked around the area. On the ground was also a DC-15S blaster carbine, a DC-15A rifle and Fisk's DC-17m. Several clones were scouting and patrolling around trying to find anything the others may have left behind. "Master, come check this out!" Ahsoka called out. Anakin turned and spotted her crouching next to a pair of footprints. "These aren't ours," Rex said as he stepped next to one of the footprints. The deep print in the mud was bigger. "But I don't understand sir. How are these the only footprints this person left behind?" Rex asked. Ahsoka looked up and spotted a slightly bent branch. "He jumped on them from a tree," she said pointing up at the branch. "Sir, come check this out," Jesse, another clone, yelled as he beckoned Rex to come closer. Anakin and Ahsoka followed Rex. "What did you find?"

"The tree bark on this tree seems damaged as if something was thrown against it," Jesse explained while brushing the slight dent with his hand. "Rex, when do you think this happened?" Anakin asked Rex. "Judging from the time that the last holo-call came in from Fisk, I would say about a minute or two before we arrived at camp," Rex analyzed with. "And you didn't hear any shot or anything that might have alarmed you?" Anakin asked the clone. "No, sir. There isn't a single blaster mark anywhere."

"General Skywalker, General Kenobi is trying to contact you," A Dogma said with a beeping holo-communicator in his hand. "Put him through," Anakin said, and the clone pressed a few buttons, a holographic image of Obi-Wan appearing as a result. "Master," Anakin said while slightly bowing his head. "Anakin, I'm here with the rest of Viper squad. We're currently searching the area for any signs of the captured men. Have you uncovered anything about the attack?" Kenobi asked with his hands behind his back.

"We're still putting pieces together, but it seems that there is more than one attacker," Anakin explained. Kenobi raised a brow in confusion. "And what makes you think that?" Kenobi questioned. "The attack happened only a minute before the rest of the clones came back to camp from their patrol. And there is no way the attacker incapacitated four trained soldiers before they could even shoot once."

Kenobi started stroking his beard as usual. "That is a logical explanation. We'll keep searching the area and report anything we find. You and Ahsoka can help the clones sweep and secure the area," Kenobi ordered. "Understood, Master."

* * *

"HK, I'm back," Cindo said as he entered the ship. He had checked the surrounding area, just in case somebody followed them. "Let's see what lies in wait under those helmets," he said as he began removing their helmets, HK removing them as well.

Under the helmets were three human males with the exact same face. The last one was a bit of an oddity. The person wearing different armor was a Mirialan. "This certainly is interesting. HK, please wake up our guests," Cindo said, gesturing at the tied up group of soldiers. Without uttering a word HK took a container filled with ice cold river water and poured it on them. Even though HK was a droid Cindo could practically see his enjoyment while doing it, making him smile under his mask.

The men's eyes opened the instant the water hit them. It was safe to say that they got shocked by the sudden shower. "Where are we and who are you?" Hardcase demanded.

"I'll be the one asking questions," Cindo said. "Ask away, It's not like we're going anywhere," Hardcase said, rolling his eyes.

"What are the three of you supposed to be?" he asked, with his hands crossed across his chest. "We're clones. Isn't it obvious?" Kix responded sarcastically. The man didn't seem to care for the sarcastic remark. He turned his head towards Fisk. "And you?"

"I'm not a clone," Fisk answered simply. "Where does your allegiance lie?" The man asked. "With the Republic. We were bred and engineered to fight and die for the Republic if needed," Tup answered. "Do the Jedi still exist?" Cindo asked with concern in his voice. "Of course they do. They're the ones giving us orders," Kix answered.

Cindo couldn't believe it, but he sensed that the man wasn't lying. What happened while he was gone? Was the vision he received on Ilum fake? No, it couldn't be. He still sensed that something was wrong. "Would any of you mind if I tried to access one of your brains," Cindo said. "Sorry, what?" Tup asked in shock. "You have to be joking," Hardcase muttered to himself.

"Hardcase volunteers," Fisk said all of the sudden. "No, no, no, I don't!" he yelled back at him. "He'll do," Cindo said as he slowly moved towards him. He got on his knees next to the men and slowly put his hand close to Hardcase's head. "Don't resist, otherwise this'll hurt. A lot," Cindo explained as he began to focus on the clone's mind. Everything appeared to be normal until he got further into his mind. The surface levels of his memories were filled with battle scenes and scenes of him just enjoying his time with his friends. But underneath that was a hidden layer of fear. Some outside influence was forcing something evil into his head. He could see silhouettes of clones just killing anybody they came across.

Cindo left his mind and returned to the real world. "These nightmares you're having. Explain," Cindo demanded. "I can't remember any of it. I know I experience them, but I just forget as soon as I wake up," he explained with a frustrated expression. Cindo felt pity for them. They were so much different from the ones he saw in his vision. The nightmares he found in Hardcase's head made him realize that there had to be something in the clones' brains. Brainwashing? Or maybe something entirely different.

He was knocked out of his train of thought by a sudden outburst of noises coming from the helmets and a loud explosion. He ran down the ramp of the ship only to be greeted by a burning Republic vessel tumbling towards the surface.


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Light in Darkness (20 BBY)

(Odessen) "How did the Separatists figure out that we're here?" Ahsoka asked as she was running behind Anakin. They and a few clones were running towards the crash site. "We'll have time to answer those questions later," Anakin said not turning his head. They came upon a long straight line of destroyed trees and deep dirt trail which stretched for about a hundred meters. The whole ship was still burning. They ran towards the ship with lightsabers out and weapons ready just in case if there were any shade stalkers that got attracted by the noise. The immediate area around the ship was clear, so Anakin went straight to the cockpit area. He spotted the two clones who were left to operate the ship. He reached out with the Force trying to sense any sings of life but there were none.

"They're dead," he declared, before turning around to address the clones. "You three rig the ship to explode. Everybody else back to camp. We have to prepare for a fight," Anakin commanded. "Sir, look," one of the clones said pointing at the sky. A Providence class dreadnought was moving into orbit, with four droid transports closing towards the ground.

* * *

"HK, bring me one of our guests," Cindo commanded. He was looking at the sky, observing the dreadnought and the droid transports. A slight cry of pain could be heard from behind. Tup rolled down the ramp and landed in the dirt. Cindo looked up at HK who was standing on the top of the ramp with an irritated expression. "You didn't say that I was supposed to be gentle with the meatbag," HK said with a shrug before returning into the ship.

Cindo helped the clone up on his feet and pointed towards the ship. "What is that?"

"A Separatist ship. They're the ones we're fighting against," Tup explained. "Who's their leader?" Cindo asked. "A Sith by the name of Dooku." Cindo was slightly concerned by the statement. Sith were known for their ferocity and ruthlessness. But at the same time, he was also confused. Five years ago there were no confirmed Sith in the galaxy. How could one have risen to power without being shut down by a Jedi before he could've amassed an army?

"What do these Separatist forces consist of?" Cindo asked. "Most of them are droids. But there are also a few Sith." More Sith? This whole situation didn't make sense? How didn't the Jedi know about this? They should have felt the growing darkness and done something about it. Cindo grabbed Tup's arm and dragged him back into the ship.

Cindo released Tup who sat back on the ground next to his comrades. There was a backpack close to the, which Cindo didn't notice up until then. "Whose backpack is that?" he asked. "Mine. Why?" Fisk responded. "What's in it?"

"I'm a demolitions expert. Take a guess," he said irritably as if Cindo was supposed to know that. He grabbed the backpack and opened it. Inside were mostly thermal detonators, a remote detonator and some other specialized explosives Cindo didn't recognize. He thought about something for a few long moments before turning to HK who was standing next to the clones. "Untie them," Cindo commanded. HK did so and the clones and Fisk stood up, some of the rubbing their wrists.

"Your friends should be closeby by now. After we leave wait for a few minutes and then go. If I see any of you trying to follow us or anything like that I will not hesitate to kill you. Do you understand?" Cindo said as he was putting the backpack on. "You're just going to leave us here without weapons?" Hardcase asked in a raised voice. "Relax. With how slowly they're approaching it's going to take at least ten minutes for them to land. Enough for me to do my job and you to return to your team," he stated. HK was already outside of the ship and Cindo was about to leave when one of the soldiers grabbed his hand. "Thank you for letting us go," Fisk told him. Without uttering a word Cindo freed himself from his grip and left the ship.

"If I may ask. Where are we going?" HK said as he was following Cindo on a pathway up a hill. "To my meditation spot," Cindo answered simply. "This hardly seems like the time for meditation," HK questioned. "It's going to be a different type of meditation today," Cindo said as he tapped on the backpack filled with explosives. They arrived at Cindo's usual meditation spot, the stones still placed in a perfect circle. Cindo put the backpack on the ground and threw a few thermal detonators towards HK without warning, the droid catching all of them with ease. "Place a few on each rock and make sure to link them to this detonator," he instructed as he began doing the same thing. The rocks were just about as big as Cindo was high.

After they set the charges Cindo got down on his knees in the middle of the stones, closed his eyes and let the Force flow through him freely. "He extended both of his hands towards the transport ships which were now joined by gunships functioning as escorts. He began slowly pulling his hands backwards, making all of the rocks levitate in the air. He then envisioned himself throwing the rocks to the ships and extended his hands as fast as he could. The rocks flew past and into the air with incredible speed. He opened his eyes and grabbed the detonator which was on the ground on his right. He observed the large rock arching through the air for a couple hundred meters before detonating the charges.

Three of the four ships erupted in flames as they started tumbling towards the ground, with most of the escort gunships following suite. "You know I served a guardian before you, thousands of years ago. But I have never seen her do anything like that," HK commented, making Cindo smile under his mask.

* * *

"So, does anybody know where we're going," Hardcase commented, following the group. "It would have been easier if the sun was out when we got captured, so we could at least orientate ourselves. Because currently, I'm just walking into a random direction," Fisk said as he was leading the group through the forest. "A random direction? Great," Hardcase commented, Kix nudging him slightly as a result. "What else can we do?"

Then all of the sudden they heard sounds coming from the bushes. They got down and slowly approached the sound. Somebody stepped out of the bush and they were brought to the ground by the clones and Fisk. "Stand down Lieutenant!" Another man said, stepping out of the bushes. The four men panicked so hard they didn't notice that the first man who stepped out of the bus was another Viper squad member.

"Sorry, about that Glitch," he said while helping the man he attacked back up on his feet. "General Kenobi, we found them," Major Razer, leader of Viper squad said. "It's good to have you back. How did you escape?" Obi-Wan asked them as they approached the rest of Viper squad, Kyle and Razy and a few other clones of the 501st who were assigned to the search party. "We didn't escape, General. They let us go," Fisk explained. The four men were handed weapons and they took them with no hesitation. "They?" Kenobi asked with an intrigued expression. "Yes, sir. They. A man and a droid unlike any I've seen before," Fisk said. "Now you've piqued my interest," Glitch commented. Being the expert for anything electronic, of course, he got excited by the prospect of seeing and examining a new droid. "That will have to wait, Sergeant. We have to go back to camp and regroup with the rest before the droid l…" Kenobi's sentence got interrupted by loud explosions.

Most of the droid transport ships, which were barely visible through the thick canopy of the forest were now set aflame and tumbling towards the ground. Obi-Wan got out his holo-communicator and called main base. Anakin and Ahsoka appeared on the hologram. "Anakin did you do that?" Obi-Wan asked, bewildered. "What? The ships? No. I thought you did that. It seemed like a pretty ingenious way of doing it," Anakin commented, grinning. "You saw how the transport got destroyed? If you did, would you be kind enough to enlighten me?" Obi-Wan asked. "Of course, Master. We saw a bunch of rocks soaring through the air towards the ships. They exploded just at the right time, destroying all but one of the transports."

Fisk got closer to the holo-communicator once he heard what Anakin had said. "Sir, I think I know what happened, if I may?" Fisk said. "Go ahead Lieutenant," Kenobi said gesturing. "The man who captured us took my explosives before setting us free. So, my guess is he did that," Fisk told them. "But the rocks travelled quite far through the air. How did he make the go so far?" Anakin questioned. "He can use the Force. Back at camp, he used it to throw Kix into a tree."

Anakin was about to say something, but he got interrupted by a clone who stopped next to him and said something to him. "Master, you might want to return to base. The dreadnought is launching more transports," Anakin reported. "We'll be there as soon as possible. Kenobi out," he said, before putting the communicator back in his pocket.

* * *

"Great. More transports," Cindo said with a sigh. "Let's go greet our guests shall we?" he asked rhetorically. He got up and started walking towards where the last remaining transport of the first wave was landing.

At this point it was late morning and the sky was clear, making the dreadnought completely visible. Cindo and HK were sneaking through the canopy of the forest. They were standing high above two droids. "I don't recognize these models. If we get a hold of them I might be able to access them and hopefully extract some useful information," HK said as quietly as his voice box allowed him to. "Okay. You ready to take them?" Cindo said crouched on a branch, his hands firmly grabbing it. "After you," HK said, gesturing down at the droids. Cindo dropped down to the ground, using the Force to make his landing silent. He grabbed the droid from behind and dragged him into the bushes, cutting off its head with his dagger. The droid managed to let out a short wail before its head was cut off alerting the other droid. But the other droid was unable to act because as soon as it turned HK dropped on top of it, forcing it to drop to the floor, and stomped its head. HK then dragged the droid into the bushes as well.

HK hooked himself up to the other droid and began searching its data core for any useful information. "Have you identified the type of these droids?" Cindo asked quietly. "I found out much more than that," HK told him as it disconnected itself from the Separatist droid. "I have all the data on every droid the Separatists use. And I also found out what their mission is. To destroy the Jedi who came to this planet and to find the person or group of people who activated the distress beacon," HK reported. "Did you find out how many droids are on that ship?" Cindo asked peeking from behind a tree to see if any other patrols were coming. "Let me search through the files quickly…" HK said before pausing to analyze the files. "It says here that they were diverted from a space battle, so their ground forces are limited…" It paused for a second again. "If my calculations are correct these should be the last four transports they'll be sending," HK said. "Good. Then let's find the landing site of the first one before the rest of the transports arrive," Cindo commanded, before climbing up the tree he was hiding behind. "Right behind you."

* * *

"Droid! Status report," a man sitting in the captain's chair of the dreadnought said. "The second wave of transports should be arriving at the drop site soon. The transport that managed to land reports no resistance at the drop zone," the droid with yellow markings, signifying it's commander status, reported.

"Good. Prepare my shuttle and tell Galak that me and Naomi will be joining him soon," the man told the droid. "Roger, roger," the droid responded, typing some things into a console.

The door to the ship's bridge opened wide and through them stepped a scantily dressed red Twi'lek with black markings. The man in the captain's chair turned around. "Derel, darling when are going to go out there. You know I don't like standing around when there are Jedi to kill," she said, walking towards him just a bit seductively. She sat down on his thigh and put her hand around his head. "Don't worry my love. We'll be out there as soon as Galak gives us the all clear," he said slowly stroking her right cheek. "I can't wait," she said while smiling. She began moving in for a kiss and Derel was prepared to return it before being interrupted. "Umm… Sir?" the commander droid said standing behind his chair. Derel turned the chair and put his lightsaber up to the droid "What?" He yelled at the droid. "Commander Galak is reporting that his troops are under attack," the droid reported. "Republic scum…" Naomi said. "Not Republic, sir. Our troops are under attack by a man and an unidentifiable droid," the commander said, cautiously backing off. "One… man," Derel said, his right eye twitching slightly.

"Is the shuttle ready?" he asked the droid with a blank expression. "They haven't begun prepa…" Before it could finish its sentence its head flew across the bridge, landing in the middle of three battle droids who looked down at it. "You! You're in charge now," Derel said, pointing his finger at the one in the middle. The droid straightened out and saluted. "Roger, roger."

"What do you say if we go and greet our little troublemaker," Derel said, offering Naomi his hand. She took it and stood up from the chair. "Thought you'd never ask."

* * *

"This is going well wouldn't you say," Cindo commented as he was deflecting blaster bolts with his dual-bladed lightsaber, HK taking cover behind him and returning shots with one of the droid's weapons he picked up. "Oh yes, it's going brilliantly," it said sarcastically shooting one of the droids in the center of its head. Cindo used the Force to push back the droids in front of them, making them fall to the ground or stumble, and began running at them. He began spinning his lightsaber and moving or spinning as much as he could, cutting through groups of battle droids. The only thing they could do is hope that he wouldn't block one of the shots, but that event never happened. He cut through all of them like butter with HK taking them down from afar. The last couple of battle droids fell and Cindo deactivated his lightsaber, clipping it onto his belt while HK holstered its weapon.

"You know this is actually quite fun," Cindo commented, admiring his and HK's work. Droid parts were scattered all around the area. "I have to say our combat proficiency is higher than I estimated," HK said, making Cindo shake his head and smile under his mask in response. "Well there are probably more droids moving towards our position since the transports just landed, so let's not drop our guard." Cindo began moving in the direction from where the droid patrol came from, HK following closely behind him. "If I may ask, why are we not asking the other visitors for help?" HK said. Cindo froze in place. "I'm still thinking all of this through. I had a vision long ago of clones killing the Jedi. They seem different now, but there's still something going with them which they themselves don't know about, which makes them dangerous to us and everybody else around them," Cindo explained. "Anyway let's keep moving," he added.

They encountered a few more patrols consisting mostly of B1 and B2 battle droids. The first being mostly dumb and expandable, making them easy to cut down and the latter being just as dumb but bigger and stronger. They never encountered a patrol that had more than fifteen droids, but with the amount of patrols they took care off – that being around seven – they were pretty sure that the Separatists were very slowly running out of droids. Of course the main contingent would be at the landing zone, but still. Cindo and HK used the forest to their advantage, ambushing and confusing patrols.

They arrived at the landing zone unscathed. They went up to a raised position where they found two B1's and took them out quietly, gaining an amazing scouting position. They could see the entire clearing where the ships landed. "Give me a threat assessment when you can. I'll try to figure out our best entry point," Cindo commanded the droid. "Roger," HK responded simply observing the area from a prone position. "We seem to be in luck. They're moving out most of their forces," HK reported. They waited until all of the droids who were leaving left. "Ok, so how many?" Cindo asked. "Forty-two B1's, eighteen B2's and four commando droids and a Twi'lek," HK told him. "A Twi'lek?" Cindo said with a raised brow. He could have really used some binoculars right now. "Yes. A red male Twi'lek," HK confirmed. " _Has to be one of the Sith,"_ Cindo thought.

"As I see it we have two options. Either we go in guns blazing or we use their stupidity to our advantage," Cindo said. "And how would we use their stupidity to our advantage?" HK asked.

* * *

"This is not a good idea," HK said. Cindo was acting as if he was dead and HK was carrying him right toward the landing zone in the opposite direction of where the main bulk of the droid forces were headed. The droids began placing fences and small fortifications around the landing zone, leaving a hole as the main entrance. Two droids spotted HK carrying Cindo and began moving towards them. "Stop right there," one of the B1's ordered. "I've never seen your model before. And you don't look like a Separatist droid," the other one said. "I'm the Generals personal droid. He gave me a mission to capture one of the Jedi, so I did. If you have any problems with that you can take it up with him," HK said, standing in front of them and looking down at them. The droids looked at each other with what Cindo could best distinguish as panicked expressions. "You can go right ahead sir. The General will be arriving on site soon," the droid on the left said. Both of them saluted HK as he began moving into the now lightly fortified compound.

HK put Cindo down behind a pile of large boxes close to one of the transports. "I can't believe that actually worked," Cindo said in astonishment. "Me neither," HK said looking around to see if any of the droids were close. "So, what now?" HK asked. Cindo pulled a few of the thermal detonators they didn't plant on the rocks. "See those transports? We're gonna blow them up. I'll create a distraction and attract the guards. You'll then plant the charges and blow up the transports preventing them from getting supplies and backup. Pretty simple," Cindo said. HK took the detonators and the detonation device and magnetically attached them to his hip area.

"He went up to one of the transports. The droids were unloading boxes with two B2 super battle droids acting as guards. They saw him and raised their weapons. "Stop!" the left one demanded. Cindo kept on walking forward. He extended his hands, grabbing the B2's with the Force and throwing them into a droid which was carrying a box down the ramp. It was instantly destroyed by the impact of the droids. He then kept on casually walking around and throwing the two super battle droids around the area, using them to destroy the other droids and attract attention.

Shots began to rain into his direction. A group of about twenty B1's was approaching him. He brought the two super battle droids, who were now destroyed as well, in front of him, using them as a shield. He began running towards the group of droids, the impact of the many blasters pointed at him shielded by the B2's. Once he got close enough he used the Force to push his makeshift shield into the group, destroying a few of the droids. He pulled the his lightsaber in the double-bladed mode from beneath his coat, igniting it and deflecting a hail of blaster bolts by spinning the saber as fast as he could.

Focusing hard, he began casting force lightning but not in the usual way. Myria taught him how to imbue his lightsaber with force lightning, allowing him to do some pretty interesting attacks. His hands began sparking as he was deflecting bolts, the hilt and the blades themselves getting slowly surrounded by lightning.

He pushed the droids back with a simple force push giving him enough time to execute his attack. He swung the saber horizontally, a wide line of force lightning emitting from it, travelling towards the droids. The closest row of droids instantly plummeted to the ground on impact. He then jumped high, enhancing the height of the jump with the Force. While in the air he used his free hand to slam the droids with waves of force energy. After he landed only a few droids were left. They began slowly backing off while shooting at Cindo. He kept on repelling their feeble attempts while slowly crushing each and every one of them with the Force. The last droid attempted to run away, screaming in pure agony, but it came to a sudden stop when a lightsaber flew through it cutting it in half. Cindo then recalled the saber. He caught it and reassembled it into its double-bladed style.

HK ran up behind him. "I'm done placing the explosives. Do you want me to detonate them now?" it asked. Before Cindo could answer another group of droids began approaching and shooting them. Cindo pulled HK behind cover. "Stay here and don't show yourself. I'm gonna run into that small makeshift bunker on the other side of the transports. When the droids are somewhere in between the transports you'll blow them up. Got it?" Cindo explained while looking over the boxes every few seconds to see how close the droids were. HK nodded in understanding and Cindo took off towards the bunker.

The droids did just as Cindo said. They followed him. When most of them were in-between the ships, HK pressed the button on the remote blowing up all of the ships and the droids with them. He picked off the last few remaining droids. Large clouds of smoke were coming out of the destroyed ships. Cindo passed through the smoke, stepping over bits and pieces of droids. He came up to HK and put a hand on his shoulder. "You see. Simple plan," Cindo remarked. "Simple indeed," HK said in response.

"Jedi!" a voice filled with anger called out. It was the Twi'lek. He was about as tall as the clones, black armor encasing his body. His orange eyes were burning with rage. "Sith…" Cindo said under his breath. "Prepare to die! he yelled as he ignited his crimson saber. Cindo brought out his lightsaber separating them into two, igniting them and getting into his combat stance, with one saber in a reverse grip.

The Twi'lek lunged at him. Cindo blocked the few initial strikes utilizing both of his sabers. Fueled by his hate the Sith was ferocious and didn't stop swinging. Cindo saw himself getting forced back slowly before a blaster shot forced the Sith to turn and deflect it. He force pushed HK into the pile of boxes making them tumble down on top of it. Cindo used this opportunity to shock the Sith with a quick charge of lightning. The Sith was bewildered. He attempted to shock Cindo in retaliation, but Cindo caught the force lightning with his hand and sent it back at him forcing him to fall to one knee. "You're no Jedi," the Sith said as he was looking at the ground his shoulders and back emitting steam. "What are you?" he asked looking up at Cindo in disdain. Cindo deactivated one of his sabers and clipped it to his belt while he put the other saber to the Twi'lek's neck. He then put his other hand in front of his forehead and used the Force to try and access his memories. The Twi'lek screamed out in pain as he tried to resist, but to no avail.

Cindo could see countless clones being slaughtered on a battlefield. Then he saw another memory where the man was killing unarmed civilians and Cindo could swear he heard him smiling. He pulled himself out of his memories and back to the real world. The grip on his saber tightened. "So, many innocent lives lost and for what?" he said under his breath looking away and thinking. The Twi'lek took this as an opportunity to get back into the fight, so he pushed Cindo away and tried to reach for his saber hilt which was laying on the ground behind him. But just centimeters from the saber he noticed that he couldn't move. He tried resisting as hard as he could, but the more he resisted the tighter and more painful the grip got. He was lifted off the ground and turned around. Cindo impaled his heart. His body fell to the ground as he let out his last gasp of air.

"Galak!" a feminine voice behind Cindo cried out in agony.

* * *

 _I just wanted to say a quick thank you to everybody who's been reading this story. It really does mean a lot to me. I currently have plans for the story to go past the events from Revenge of the Sith, but how far past that I don't know. I'm still debating about doing a very interesting event nobody would expect, but we're still a long time away from that and depending on what I choose to do the story can become much longer than I thought it would._


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18: Old Friends (20 BBY)

(Odessen) Blaster bolts were flying off in every direction killing clones and droids alike. The droid army launched a surprise attack on the camp. They were slowly approaching the clearing where the Republic camp was from all directions firing blaster bolts everywhere. Many of the clone patrols were caught off guard by the droids and failed to return to camp, getting shot down on the way.

"Echo, Fives, reinforce the south side. Go!" Rex ordered. "Yes, Sir!" the troopers responded hiding behind the same low cover as their captain. They began moving from cover to cover while backing each other up. "Rex, any word from Obi-Wan?" Anakin said while effortlessly deflecting red colored bolts. "No, sir," Rex said. He moved out of cover and shot down a few droids before returning back behind it. "Great… Whenever I need him he's nowhere to be seen," Anakin remarked.

"Halt!" Razer called out, emphasizing his command by lifting his hand. The group stopped. "General Kenobi, you should come see this! Everybody else, secure the area!" Razer called out. Kenobi who was in the middle of the column of soldiers ran to the front to see what the Major found. There was a straight line full of droid footprints headed directly towards the Republic camp. "The camp must be under attack. Glitch try contacting them," Razer said. Glitch pulled out a holo-communicator and attempted to contact base. But there was no response. "They're either all dead or the Seps are jamming our transmissions," Glitch analyzed putting it back into his backpack. Kenobi pondered for a few moments. "Kyle, Raz'yel, come over here." The two Padawans ran up to Kenobi. "Yes, Master?" Kyle said.

"Kyle I need you take the clones and go back to camp. Me, Raz'yel and Viper squad will follow the droid tracks and see where they lead." Kyle frowned. "Master if I may, shouldn't I be the one that stays with you since I'm your Padawan?" Kyle said as politely as he could. "Raz'yel is the youngest here and isn't as experienced as you. You, my Padawan are a capable leader and that's why I'm giving you the command of these clones," Kenobi explained. "I won't let you down Master," Kyle said determinedly. "Men, follow me." The group separated, Kyle and the clones following the tracks back to camp while Obi-Wan, Raz'yel and Viper squad headed in the opposite direction.

Cindo sensed a lifeform approaching him from behind with high speed. He turned around and used the Force to propel the person upwards, forcing them to jump over him. After the person flew over him he turned on his heels and took time to examine the person. Another red Twi'lek. This one was a female and was shorter and younger than Galak. "You'll pay for this, Jedi!" she yelled. She began running at him again, igniting her own crimson saber and picking up the fallen Twi'lek's one as well.

She screamed and jumped towards Cindo who ducked under the attack. She landed just behind him, close enough so that he was able to kick her in the back and send her flying. "You're practically radiating anger. He must've meant so much to you," Cindo teased as he put the two lightsaber hilts together, turning it into a double-bladed one. Cindo could swear that her eyes turned into an even more devilish shade of orange after that statement. She truly was losing herself completely to the dark side. "Die Jedi scum!" she said. She stumbled onto her feet and attempted another engagement. This time she was hit by the body of the Twi'lek, sending her flying to the ground once again, with the body on top of her. She rolled it off herself and met face to face with it. She began crying. Cindo examined them. "Ah… a brother," he continued teasing. She grabbed both of her lightsaber and ran at him again. This time she managed to strike, but Cindo blocked her attempt. She twirled and swung again. Cindo backpedaled and threw his saber at her. She barely managed to duck under it. She saw that Cindo was unarmed and jabbed at him. Using the Force, Cindo propelled himself upwards, performing a backflip in the air while catching his lightsaber, landing and shocking her with lightning. She cried out in pain as she was forced down onto her knees from the pain. He could hear her sobbing the closer he got to her. She had given up.

Cindo walked in front of her and looked down. She looked up at him, tears rolling down her face. "You chose this path. The dark side only leads to despair," he said dryly. She looked back down at the ground and nodded slightly. Cindo extinguished his blue blade. He brought the saber up ready to strike her down, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He felt danger coming from behind him. He managed to jump to the side just in time to evade another crimson blade from splitting his head in half. He recognized the person's face immediately. "Derel…"

"I've never seen you before. Tell me what's the name of the Jedi I get to kill today?" he asked hatefully. "I'm not a Jedi. And as for your question. I'm and old friend," Cindo said, igniting the other blade. "I certainly don't remember anybody with your sense of fashion nor do I remember anybody that used a double-bladed lightsaber. And also the colours… very interesting," Derel said, analyzing Cindo with his orange eyes. He then began his attack. He swung downwards. Cindo blocked his attack and attempted a horizontal slash, which Derel avoided by ducking. They exchanged a few swings before getting caught in a blade lock. Cindo decided to disconnect the two hilts, catching Derel by surprise and grazing his right shoulder. Derel retreated a couple of steps and began looking at his wound. Cindo in the meantime stood there and got into his usual fighting stance. Derel noticed his stance and his pupils widened in anger. "Cindo…" he said as if spitting out poison. "Miss me?" Derel's grip on his saber tightened and he clenched his other fist.

"Prepare to die," he said. He jumped towards Cindo and began swinging at him as wildly as he could. Cindo was forced to fall back while blocking the fast and powerful attacks. Cindo found himself forced down to the ground by a powerful hit of force lightning, both of his sabers being knocked away from his hands. Derel was standing on top of him laughing. "Goodbye Cindo!" Just as he was about to put his lightsaber through Cindo's chest a blaster bold penetrated his right shoulder. He cried out in pain and turned around trying to see who shot him. Cindo took the opportunity to regain his composure and push away Derel with the Force. Finding himself too wounded to continue the fight he ran towards his shuttle, which Cindo only now noticed. He could see the female Twi'lek dragging the body of her brother up the ramp. Derel ran past her and soon the shuttle was flying away towards the dreadnought.

"Not one of my most precise shots," HK commented as he walked up next to Cindo who was looking at the shuttle as it left the area. "Well it saved me and it's all that matters," Cindo said before turning towards HK. "Thanks for the help." HK nodded. "Only doing my duty."

"Don't move!" a voice called out. Cindo and HK turned and spotted four Republic commandos pointing their blasters at them. "Put your hands in the air!" Cindo and HK looked at each other and then back to the soldiers. "I said put your hands up!" he demanded again. "Razer stop! This is him," this time a soldier in familiar looking armor called out as he joined the rest of his squad. "Are you sure?" the leader asked. Fisk nodded. "Yes, I'm sure, sir."

"Lek, go find the General. Tell him that we've found the person who sent out the signal," the leader ordered. "Yes, sir!" a feminine voice said running off into the direction where Fisk came from. "You can put the guns down sir," Fisk reassured them. "I would like to keep them on him as a safety precaution. Until the General arrives at least."

After a long minute of guns being pointed at Cindo the one they called Lek finally returned with two familiar faces, Obi-Wan and Razy. Cindo smiled under his mask. "Major, you may put your guns down," Kenobi said. The men immediately complied, lowering their weapons. "What happened here.?" Obi-Wan said from a safe distance. "Me and my trusted companion here uncovered this landing zone and decided to clear it. We also managed to kill a Sith and injure two," Cindo said proudly. He couldn't believe how well all of this went. "Interesting. And did you manage to catch the name of the Sith who you fought?" Kenobi asked. "Two Twi'leks. One went by the name of Galak, the other one was his sister. And then there was also… Derel." Razy's eyes were fixed on the man. He was checking him out, from head to toes. His head locked on the sabers. "Derel. You sound like you know him?" Kenobi said. "That's because he does, Master," Razy intervened. "Can you turn on your lightsabers for us please," Razy said. It was the moment of truth. Cindo knew he was ready and that it was time to return home. He didn't know if things changed or if the Jedi accepted him, but he knew that he needed to return. "I know what you're thinking," Cindo said before pulling down his hood. He began slowly removing his helmet.

Obi-Wan's and Razy's eyes widened in shock. "C-Cindo…" Razy said carefully. He couldn't really easily identify him anymore. His scarred face, slicked back dark brown hair and beard made him barely recognizable. "Y-You're…" Razy began saying before he was interrupted by Razer. "Sith!" the men raised their weapons. "I'm no Sith," Cindo said closing his eyes. He realized he must've had Sith eyes from the dark side abilities he used during the fight, but he learned how to get rid of them as soon as the fight ended. He just needed a few moments to center himself. He reopened his eyes and they shined in the usual blue color. "General, do we open fire?" Razer asked in a confused manner, not knowing what he was looking at. "No. There is something going on here and I wish to find out what. Come with us," Kenobi said.

The hike back to the camp was mostly quiet. Obi-Wan who was in the front seemed to be embroiled in thought. "Can I examine the droid when we get back to camp. I've never seen an HK unit before," Glitch asked while walking next to Cindo. He and HK both looked at him. "Over my dead body," they responded in unison. Glitch let out a disappointed sigh and fell back to his position in the column. "What were you doing out here all these years?" Razy asked. "I'll explain everything once we're off planet," Cindo answered. The rest of the trip was quiet.

"Good to see you haven't even broken a sweat," Anakin told Obi-Wan while grinning at him. The outside areas of the camp were littered with droid and clone corpses. "Didn't need to. Our friend over here took care of everything," Obi-Wan said moving past Anakin. The dreadnought had at this point disappeared as a result of not having enough troops to continue the mission.

"Who's he talking about?" Ahsoka asked Anakin. "I have no idea," Anakin responded while greeting Viper squad with nods as the members were entering the camp. Then all of the sudden a droid entered the camp. "And what's your name? Who do you belong to?" Anakin asked. While this was happening, Kyle walked up to Anakin with a data-pad in his hands. "It's name's HK. It belongs to me." Out from behind HK walked Razy followed by an old friend. Kyle's and Ahsoka's eyes widened and Anakin smiled at the sight of the man. "You're alive?" Kyle asked in bewilderment. "Pretty sure I am, yes," Cindo responded sarcastically. "What were you doing all these years?" he asked while Ahsoka stood next to him speechless. "He said he would explain everything once we're on a ship out of here," Razy answered instead of Cindo.

"Well, it seems like we'll get answers soon," Anakin said. "We managed to recover the downed ship's transmitter and were able to contact Coruscant. They're sending an extraction team to get us out of here."


	20. Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Catching Up (20 BBY)

The group of Jedi besides Ahsoka alongside Captain Rex and Major Razer were standing around the holotable in the Resolute's bridge. Cindo had been put in force binders and HK had been deactivated after they left the surface as a precaution. They couldn't fully trust Cindo just yet as there was a lot they needed to learn.

"Let's begin with saying we're all glad you're safe," Obi-Wan started. "Yeah, I can see that," Cindo retorted, moving his cuffed hands. "I can assure you that we will remove them once we're done. So, are you ready?" Cindo nodded.

"Good. Be as accurate as you can. I don't know how the council will react to all of this, so it's best if you give us as much information as possible." There was a short pause. "Why did you leave?" Obi-Wan asked. "Because I had to…" Cindo said simply. Obi-Wan raised a brow and Cindo sighed. "Back on Ilum during the gathering the ghosts contacted me. They told me that my place wasn't with the Jedi," he told them. "The ghosts…" Obi-Wan said silently. "Yes. They told me that there's another way to interpret the Force. A much stronger way than any Jedi or Sith could interpret it." The group eyed him suspiciously. "The Wardens. They existed long ago as a peacekeeping force, but they were killed off," Cindo told them.

"By who exactly?" Anakin asked aggressively. "Sith… and Jedi." Kenobi raised an eyebrow. "Why would the Jedi destroy an order that had the same goal as them?" Cindo smirked. "They said because Wardens were dark side followers, but everyone knew that it was because of their greed. The Republic was cutting their funding and limiting their influence in the armed forces and in general. The people decided that they didn't need them anymore," Cindo said. Anakin questioned his answer. "And how would we know that you're not lying?"

"What have I got to gain by lying? I'm just answering your questions. And besides that happened thousands of years ago. I know that the Jedi have changed for the better. Is there more you want to know?" Obi-Wan immediately spoke. "How does your order work? Do you have a code or something similar?"

"Flowing through all there is balance. There is no meaning to a life without passion, yet I will not let passion destroy me. Power is gained through darkness, yet I will not let darkness control me. Peace is gained through light, yet I will not let light obstruct me. There is freedom in life, there is purpose in death. The Force is all things and I am the Force," Cindo said standing proudly with his back straightened. He was pretty sure he heard Razy say cool in a barely audible tone. "Interesting. You do not deny darkness, yet you do not lose yourself in it. The way of having an incredible array of abilities and strength but still being yourself. How does one do that?" Obi-Wan asked, slightly amazed. "You learn how to control your feelings while also using them to empower you. A simple concept but it takes years upon years to master," Cindo explained.

"Why did you have Sith eyes when we met you, if you claim that you can control your emotions?" Razy asked. "There is only light and dark, there is no in-between way of using the Force. Dark side abilities cause the user to become corrupt, most of the time in the form of Sith eyes. So, that means whenever I use dark side abilities for a prolonged time my eyes turn orange, but it's only for a short while. After a fight I can just simply make them disappear by calming myself down with the Force."

"I still want to know the actual reason you left us. The Cindo back then would never leave everything behind because somebody said he should," Kyle said with an angry expression. "They said I could become much more powerful if I left the Jedi," he lied. He couldn't tell them about the clones attacking the temple because nobody would believe them. From the way they talked to the clones and the way they were working together revealed that they trusted each other, so trying to say that the clones would betray them might be interpreted as a lie. He would have to wait for an opportunity. "So, that was all there was to it? Power? And you just left without saying a word! You had us all worried you selfish piece of Bantha fodder!" He left the bridge but not before garnering the attention of every person in the same room. "Okay everybody go back to whatever you were doing," Anakin said. The men returned to their duties as if nothing happened.

"Y-you didn't r-really mean that right? You d-didn't leave just for p-p-power?" Razy asked with a tear in his eye. "No, Razy I didn't. I did it to give me a better chance of protecting those who I love," Cindo explained. "But you could have done all of that with the Jedi," he said a tear rolling down his right cheek. "No, Razy. I couldn't," Cindo said calmly. "Why?" he asked. "I had terrible visions, of the Republic being destroyed. My only chance to save it was if I left." Cindo tried explaining it in a way, so that he wouldn't need to tell them about the clones. "But, how do you know that those visions were accurate?" Razy asked. "The ghosts. They told me that they have had this vision practically every day and that the outcome was always the same – the Republic falls and the Jedi with it." Razy wiped the tears from his eyes. "I believe you," he said. "I'll talk to Kyle about this, he'll understand that you had to leave once I tell him the full story," Razy said. "Thank you, old friend," Cindo said and Razy responded with a nod before leaving the bridge.

As Razy was leaving Glitch, a soldier from Viper squad, entered the bridge. "What is it now, Sergeant?" Razer asked irritably. "Sir, I would like to request something from this man," he said in an attention stance. "Go ahead," Razer said gesturing towards Cindo. "I know I've asked you this multiple times but… can I please have a closer look at your droid?" Glitch pleaded. Razer rolled his eyes while Anakin grinned and Obi-Wan shook his head. Cindo sighed irritably. "Sure. But only under my supervision," he stated. Glitch practically jumped out of joy. "Can we go now, Major, please?" Glitch asked. "Generals can we uncuff him?" asked ignoring Glitch. "I don't see why not. It seems like his goals are aligned with our own," Obi-Wan said.

* * *

It took about an hour for Glitch to finish his inspection. He checked HK's every nook and cranny and made notes. "Thank you for this," Glitch said, before leaving the LAAT. What was strange for Cindo was that he hasn't seen the man without his helmet. He saw Fisk and Razer. The latter was a bald human with green eyes. He switched HK back on. "How long have I been out?" HK immediately asked. "About two to three hours," Cindo answered. The droid checked its systems and weapons. "I'm glad to report that I'm fully operational," he said happily. For a droid it was surprisingly capable of transmitting emotion through its voice. "Good to know. Let's get out of this hangar shall we?" Cindo proposed as he was walking out of the ship. HK followed him. They spotted a clone running towards them. "Sir. The generals have assigned me to show you to your quarters," the clone said. "Lead the way," Cindo said gesturing towards the door. The clone nodded in response and turned.

It was a short walk to the quarters. Cindo dismissed the man and opened the door. To his surprise Ahsoka was already in the quarters sitting on his bed. Cindo began walking into the room, but was stopped by somebody grabbing his shoulder. "Should I wait outside?" the droid asked. "Yes," he answered simply. HK nodded and positioned himself to the right side of the door where the control panel was. When Cindo entered the room HK closed the door behind him and the lights turned on. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" He asked bowing slightly. Ahsoka jumped up on her feet and hugged him. He returned the hug. "Never knew you as a hug loving sort of person," Cindo remarked, grinning. She moved out of the hug and pointed a finger at him. "If you tell anyone about this you're dead," she said. Cindo let out a short laugh. "That's the Ahsoka I know," he said making her laugh as well. There was an awkward moment of silence "I missed you… we all did," she said looking at the ground seriously. "I missed all of you too. It was hard leaving everybody behind," he said.

"Sorry that I couldn't attend your interrogation, my Master sent me to help pick up the last of the supplies. Razy and Kyle already told me everything you said. You said you had terrible visions. That might have been a good enough explanation for them, but I want to know more," she said. Cindo thought about it for a few moments. "This is not the time or the place. And you wouldn't believe me anyway," Cindo explained. She looked at him disappointedly. "I understand. But promise that you'll tell what you saw eventually."

"I promise," he said with a gentle nod. Ahsoka was about to leave the room but she was interrupted by Cindo grabbing her arm. "Wait… I want to know what the three of you have been up to as well."

"Only if you tell me how you got that scar," she demanded and he agreed.

* * *

(Coruscant, Jedi temple) The temple was the same as when Cindo left. Beautiful and full of life. But there was something new he felt. A very light presence of the dark side. It seemed as if it was seeping through the floor into the rooms and halls of the temple. "I'm guessing you can sense it too?" Cindo asked. The group of Jedi were currently headed to the high council chamber. "The dark side. Yes, we can sense it too and it's only been getting stronger," Kenobi said. "How is this possible?" Cindo asked. "We don't know," Kenobi said. "We think it might have appeared as a result of the Jedi casualties or the increase of Sith, but it might be something else altogether."

They arrived at the door of the chamber. "Ahsoka would you be kind enough to wait here with Cindo and his droid. We have to hear what the council has to say about this first," Anakin said. "Of course, Master," she said with a small bow. The rest of the group entered the council chamber. "Although I am a droid I will say that I have a bad feeling about this," HK commented. "Whatever happens, happens, friend," Cindo said patting him on the shoulder. "The things you've told me about the war… they must've really affected you three," Cindo said. Ahsoka looked at the ground sadly. "It forced us to mature way faster than we would normally. The things you see out on the battlefield…" she stopped and looked at the ground emotionlessly, remembering the terrible events she witnessed during the war. "I'll do everything I can to help. Even if the council forbids me from getting involved," Cindo said, putting a reassuring arm on her shoulder. "Why would they forbid you from helping?" she asked confusedly. "My ideas clash with theirs is the simple explanation. But we'll see." Just as Cindo finished the sentence the door opened and Razy beckoned them to come in.

Masters Yoda, Windu, Plo and Mundi were physically present while Shaak Ti was present as a hologram. The other masters were busy with the war. Cindo stepped into the middle of the circle of masters while Obi-Wan took his seat. The rest of the group were standing slightly behind Cindo and HK. "We find ourselves in a weird situation," Mace said taking a short pause after. "You revoked our ways and instead became something else. From what Master Kenobi reported the council concluded that you are too dangerous to be kept in the temple."

"Too dangerous?" Cindo questioned. "You have embraced the dark side. You deny our ways," Mundi explained simply. "That is understandable. But only one thing matters to me and that is the well-being of my friends and the Republic. Will I be able to help the war effort?" Cindo asked. "We have concluded that you will be able to assist in the war effort. You have been given temporary quarters in the troop barracks. Whenever we will need you for a mission we will call for you, but remember, entrance to the temple without supervision is prohibited and will be taken as an act of hostility," Windu answered. An act of hostility? Things really have become tense. "Will that be all?" Cindo said. "You may leave," Windu said dryly. During the whole conversation Yoda was looking at the ground, appearing as if he was deep in thought. He turned around without bowing and left the room with HK following close behind.

* * *

(Serenno, Dooku's Palace) Derel stumbled into Dooku's throne room with Naomi following him closely. They kneeled before his desk which he was sitting behind. "From the amount of fear I'm sensing I can only guess that the mission was a failure," Dooku said in a harsh tone looking at them angrily. Him being able to sense their fear was true. He sensed it even before they entered the large dark room with the green tinted circular window behind Dooku's chair. They stood up nervously. "Not a complete failure, Master," Derel said slowly. "And what would that mean?" Dooku asked. "We uncovered the identity of the person who sent out the signal. It was a former Jedi called Cindo," Derel explained. "And you're telling me that he managed to defeat my apprentice and two assassins after being trapped on a forest planet for five years!" Dooku said angrily, standing up from his chair. "He was more powerful than any Jedi I have ever encountered. And here is the weirdest part. He said that he wasn't a Jedi," Derel said. "Not a Jedi? Then what is he?" Dooku asked suddenly intrigued. "I don't know my lord. The only thing I observed was that he wasn't afraid to use the dark side of the Force."

"Very intriguing. Tell me Derel. How would you rate the performance of the new assassins?" Dooku asked. "They failed on every front my lord. Galak was defeated easily by Cindo and killed," he said. He then looked at Naomi who returned a nervous look. "And Naomi failed even harder. She got mentally broken by Cindo with no effort. She gave up," Derel said and Naomi stood up and began backing off slowly as Dooku began to rise from his chair. "Ah… another failure. What a pity," he said before extending his right hand and shocking her with force lightning. "We have a special place designed just for failures like you." She screamed in pain as she dropped to her knees and later on to the ground. Dooku stopped shocking her after she fell unconscious from the pain and gestured to the two Magna guards who witnessed it. "You know where to take her," he said and the droids nodded as they approached. They dragged her body out of the room. "I will deal with you later," Dooku said looking down at Derel. "Of course, my Lord," he responded getting up on his feet, bowing and leaving the room.


	21. Chapter 20

Chapter 20: The Citadel (20 BBY)

It's now been a couple of weeks since Cindo was allowed to participate in the Republic war effort. He was just part of a briefing for his first mission. The mission was to rescue Jedi Master Piell and the Nexus Route coordinates from a place called the Citadel, an impenetrable prison built by the Republic to house rouge Jedi and Sith, but the separatists managed to take it over.

"Carbonite? Seriously?" Cindo said walking alongside Obi-Wan and HK. "Well, if you have a better idea on how to evade the sensors please inform me," Obi-Wan said stopping for a moment and smirking at him. "Couldn't you get somebody else for this mission?" he asked with an irritated look on his face. "It was you who said that you wanted to help," Obi-Wan said. "That's true," Cindo said with a sight of defeat. "But still. Why me out of everyone?" he asked. "I think you have more than proven yourself by defeating a platoon of battle droids and 3 Sith with your friend here," Obi-Wan explained gesturing towards HK.

They arrived at the hangar. The rest of the team consisting of Anakin, Viper squad, Captain Rex, ARK troopers Echo and Fives, Commander Cody and R2D2 with his reprogrammed droids was already there, alongside Plo Koon and Ahsoka who were going to overlook the freezing procedure to ensure nothing went wrong.

"HK get on the ship," Cindo ordered. "I'll be there to unfreeze you personally," HK said, bowing slightly. "Very funny," Cindo retorted.

"We're trusting those droids to get us into the Citadel?" Fives commented seeing the droids board the ship. "It's the only way. We're flying right into the heart of separatist territory. Droids won't be detected," Cody explained.

Cindo walked over to Viper squad who were checking their equipment. "Are your men ready, Major?" Cindo asked. "As ready as they'll ever be, sir," he reported putting a few rations into a backpack. "I don't see the need for food on this mission," Cindo commented seeing the quite abundant amount of rations Razer was packing. "They say that it should only take an hour or two for us to get out. The last time somebody told us that we were forced to wait ten days for extraction. And besides, my backpack is usually mostly empty anyways," Razer explained. The rest of the squad had finished preparing and were deep in a conversation, so Cindo didn't bother them and moved on.

He still had a couple of minutes before they got frozen, so he looked around the hangar for something to do or somebody to speak to. There were the two groups of soldiers, Anakin and Obi-Wan bickering as usual and Ahsoka and Plo.

He went towards Ahsoka seeing the sad expression on her face. "… I think he's being overly protective. He's picking and choosing which assignments I can be part of," she said sitting on the wing of Plo's fighter looking at the ground. Plo looks up and notices Cindo approaching them. "Hello, Cindo." He bowed slightly as he approached them. "Good day to you Master Plo," he greeted before looking down at Ahsoka. "What's got you riled up?"

"My master won't let me go on the mission," she answered still looking at the ground, her hands supporting her head. "Well he is your master," Cindo said making Ahsoka look up at him. "It's not for him to decide when and how I should put my life in danger. That should be my choice," she said. "Well, that is true. And from what you've told me about your time in the war you seem like you're well prepared for this," Cindo said. "I can only hope whatever Ahsoka told you wasn't overexaggerated," Plo commented under his breath.

* * *

The group was thawed out from the carbonite by the droids who landed the ship in a cavern nearby the Citadel. They began stretching out, being numb from not moving for a long period of time.

"Hey, Snips," Anakin said not having recovered from the carbonite yet. "Hey, Master," she greeted while stretching her neck. Anakin slowly turned his head towards her with a raised brow. Obi-Wan in all the confusion stepped beside Anakin and said, "I must have carbon sickness because I could swear that's Ahsoka." Anakin let out an irritated sigh. "Your eyes are fine. It's Ahsoka's hearing that needs help," Anakin determined sarcastically. "Or perhaps she persuaded our friend here to smuggle her on board," Obi-Wan said gesturing at Cindo. "No, Master, it wasn't Cindo's doing. I had orders," she said.

"Orders? From who?" Anakin questioned with a raised brow. "I discussed it with Master Plo," she said, fully confident that her lie will succeed. "He didn't tell me," Anakin said with his arms crossed. "You were already in carbonite," she replied, pointing at the carbonite for a moment. "Well, I gave you specific orders not to come," Anakin said sternly pointing an accusing finger at her. "If there's one thing I learned from you, Master, is that following direct orders isn't always the best way to solve a problem."

"I see Anakin's new teaching method is to do as I say, not as I do," Obi-Wan said walking over from the troops while Cindo put on his helmet. "Welcome aboard," he said to her with his arms behind his back. "Come on Anakin, let's see if there are any patrols nearby while our troops finish preparing," he continued as he started walking away deeper into the cavern they were currently in. "Right behind you, Master," Anakin responded giving Ahsoka one last slightly angry glare before heading off.

"Can't believe that worked," Cindo commented once they were out of hearing distance. "What can I say? I'm a smart girl," she said proudly walking over to Rex.

* * *

The group began heading off towards the Citadel while Anakin and Cindo stayed behind to brief the droids on what they'll be doing "Guard the shuttle you two. We'll contact you when we're ready for take-off," Anakin told R2 who returned some confirming beeps in response. "Are you sure you don't want me with you?" HK asked. "Don't worry HK. We need you here with the R2 and the others. And you also deserve a break as well," Cindo said tapping HK on its shoulder.

It was true. Back on Coruscant HK would spend the entire time guarding Cindo no matter what he did. Standing guard at doors or even pushing anybody that comes close away from him, HK wasn't going to let anything happen to Cindo. He told HK multiple times that he can relax because nothing will happen to him, but HK wouldn't stop doing these things, so Cindo just ended up accepting them.

The group came upon the exit of the cavern. There was a ledge and below it a large pool of acid. Gale was blowing towards them making the smell of the acid much stronger. Anakin put his backpack on the ground and brought out his macrobinoculars. "I see the entry point," Anakin said. "You were right. The wind conditions are too strong for jet packs," Cody commented looking into the vastness of the acid lake. "Yes. We'll have to do it the old fashioned way. With ascension cables and a steel grip," Obi-Wan determined. "I don't think so," Anakin backfired taking a closer look at the wall they'll be climbing. "What do you mean?" Obi-Wan asked. "Electro-mines," he said. "There's nowhere to put a grappling hook at that height. If we hit one of those, the mission's over. They'll know we're here," he added. Obi-Wan took Anakin's macrobinoculars to look at the entry point himself. "I supposed that means we free climb it," Rex said with little to no enthusiasm in his voice. Cindo in the meanwhile was sensing a plethora of Force signatures in the Citadel. He could sense pain and suffering although very faintly.

* * *

The climb was tedious, to say the least. The wall itself didn't have many places to hold on to the smell of the acid lake made Cindo's stomach turn inside out and the strong wind only proved to be as annoying as everybody thought it would be. All of that combined made for a very slow climb. Cindo was the last one. He could hear Anakin and Ahsoka talking but he couldn't make out what they were saying because of the wind.

Glitch, who was next to Cindo, stopped climbing. "I need a break," Glitch said holding onto a small ledge with one hand while shaking his other hand. "We're almost there. Aren't you supposed to be a commando?" Cindo asked him shuffling over to his position. "Not really," Glitch commented looking down towards the acid lake. "What? What do you mean not really?" Cindo asked him with a confused look which was masked by his helmet. Glitch let out a deep breath. "This isn't the time or the place if you know what I mean," he said pointing down at the lake. He then attempted to continue on climbing but he slipped on his first move and plummeted downwards. He began screaming like a small child. "Oh, will you shut up!" Cindo ordered.

Glitch quieted down and began looking around. He closed his eyes after he started falling, so he didn't notice that he was actually levitating in the air. Cindo brought him closer to the wall and he grabbed on to it while shaking and breathing heavily from the panic he experienced. "Thanks…" He was barely able to speak the word. He looked up and saw that the rest of the group was already on the platform. "Let's go they're waiting for us," Cindo said before resuming his climb.

"What took you two so long?" Obi-Wan asked helping Glitch up on the platform. "I almost fell, but thankfully Cindo was there to save me," Glitch stated. "Well done," Obi-Wan said looking at Cindo. "Come on, the rest are waiting inside."

The clones and Viper squad were behind the Jedi who were stealthily navigating the dimly lit corridors. The part of the Citadel they were in was meant as a storage area, so it didn't have many doors and extra corridors. So, they mostly just went straight unless they found a patrol and then they either took it out silently or let it go past them. They were on the last intersection where the entrance to the detention area of the citadel was. Two B1 battle droids were standing guard at the door.

The door opened and a B1 with yellow markings stepped out followed by ten B1s with red markings. "The warden's orders are to sweep the area. Divide into groups of two and search each corridor. Report anything suspicious you find," the commander droid said. The patrols went to all of the corridors, forcing the Cindo and the rest of the group to fall back to the last intersection where they hid behind a corner and waited for the patrol to pass. They then went back to the door where the two droids were still standing guard.

"Let me deal with them," Ahsoka said already moving out from behind the corner. But before she could fully emerge she was pulled back by Anakin. "Slow down. There's a camera up there," Anakin said peeking carefully and pointing at it so the rest of them could see it. It was directly above the door. "How are we gonna get past the camera without being detected?" Obi-Wan asked peeking a bit higher than Anakin was. "I have an idea," Cindo said and everybody looked at him. "And what would that idea be if we may know?" Anakin asked.

"I can use the Force to become invisible, but only for a very, very short time. It requires immense concentration. I'll walk under the door where the camera won't be able to see me, uncloak myself, kill the droids and then disable the camera," Cindo said, everybody looking at him confusedly. "I hardly think this is the time for jokes," Obi-Wan stated and they turned back towards the droids to formulate a plan. Cindo got down on his knees and began concentrating. Soon he was nowhere to be seen until they heard the door open.

"Hey. Did you do that?" the droid on the left asked. "No," the other droid said and they turned around only to see an empty corridor. They started carefully moving into the other corridor. When they were out of the frame of the camera Cindo uncloaked himself and sliced their heads off. He then moved to the door console and disabled the camera. "What are you waiting for? Let's go," he said quietly peeking from the door, gesturing to the group to follow him. They exchanged confused glances before following Cindo into the detention area of the Citadel.

"I wanna do that!" Ahsoka exclaimed as she ran through the door and stopped beside Cindo. "Do you have five years time to learn it?" Cindo said. She shook her head in amusement and began moving to the rest of the group which was already on the move.

The corridors of the attention area were much more lively and required the team to split up. The way to Piell's cell was about even for both teams. Cindo was with Obi-Wan, Rex, Cody, Fives and Echo. Stealthily walking down the hallways they encountered many cameras and patrols, taking them out one by one. The risk of exposing themselves became bigger with any scrapped droids and cameras they left behind but there was no other way.

"Sir, we're about two more intersections away from the supposed location of Master Piell," Cody reported. Cindo was in the back of the group covering their backs. "Good. Check your weapons one last time and prepare to move," Obi-Wan said before peeking around the corner. "No, there's something else," Cindo said touching where his forehead would be under his mask. "What is that something else?" Obi-Wan asked. "I can sense somebody in immense pain down that hallway," Cindo reported pointing towards the hallway to their right. "We don't have time for that," Obi-Wan commented the pressure of the mission going to his head. Those hyperspace lanes could help the Republic turn the war effort.

"Is it not the Jedi way to save innocents?" Cindo asked knowing the Jedi Master all too well even after five years. Even before Cindo left, when Obi-Wan was just a Jedi Knight, he would uphold the code and standards of the Jedi at any cost. "You're right. But we can't spare any of these clones, the main mission is too vital. You'll have to go on your own. Contact me over your comm if you find anything," Obi-Wan said. "Will do," Cindo said and with a nod of confirmation began heading in the direction where he felt the pain coming from.

The closer he got the more he could feel the persons emotions. Just pure sadness, pain and regret. He peeked around a corner looking at a row of interrogation rooms. Only one door was ray shielded with two B1 battle droids with red markings on standby. The ray shield suddenly dissipated and an interrogation droid stepped through the door. "K6N2, Commander Crix would like a report about the interrogation. He's waiting for you in his office," the droid to the left of the door said. "Right away," the droid said in response. It began moving the opposite way of where Cindo was hiding and soon it disappeared behind a corner.

After he made sure there were no cameras around or patrols doing rounds he just simply stood up and started strolling towards the droids who spotted him and eyed him confusedly. "Stop right there!" one yelled, but Cindo kept on walking. "Uhm… do we open fire?" the other one asked. "I don't know. Do they let in visitors?" It didn't manage to get an answer as its head was smashed against the ceiling a second after. The other droid only managed to stand helplessly as its gun was forced out of its hand and its body impaled by a light blue blade.

Cindo disabled the ray shield by pressing a few buttons on the console and entered the dark interrogation room. He turned on the lights and was horrified by what he saw. The same red Twi'lek woman he fought briefly on Odessen was suspended from the ceiling with stun cuffs with a small pool of blood on the ground. She appeared to be barely conscious. Her face, hands and legs were covered in cuts and bruises. "P-please… end… it," she barely managed to say while blood was dripping from her mouth every time she opened it. Her Sith eyes were barely open and bloodshot.

He cut her free from the cuffs and carefully put her down on the ground. She fell unconscious soon after letting Cindo wonder how she ended up here. He sensed her regret and sorrow when she was still awake. No Sith would ever break as easily as she did. He needed to find out more, but she was in no condition to walk and he couldn't leave her in the cell to get help.

"Can't believe I'm doing this," Cindo remarked to himself as he threw her over his shoulder and began carrying her out of the cell. He bumped into the interrogation droid who fell on his back. "Stupid battle droids," the interrogation droid said before looking up and seeing an orange blade fly towards it. Cindo deactivated the saber but kept it in his hand just in case he would have to react quickly during the route to the rest of the group.

His wrist comm began beeping. "Yes, Obi-Wan?" he asked looking around to see if anybody else was coming. "We saved Master Piell but another problem has arisen. Master Piell only has half of the code. He gave the other half to his captain, who is apparently being held deeper within the Citadel with some officers. We are going to start heading there. Have you found who you were looking for?" Obi-Wan said. "Yes… Although it will take some time to get back to where you are," Cindo said silently as he began moving back towards the rest of the group. "We can't waste any more time," he could hear Anakin say in the background. "Don't wait for me. I'll catch up," Cindo reassured the rest of them. "Understood. Obi-Wan out," Kenobi said. The transmission ended and Cindo was finally able to concentrate on his surroundings.

* * *

The Twi'lek proved to only be a mild inconvenience. She was light so it wasn't hard to maneuver around quickly even with her hanging over his right shoulder. He was close to the cell where Master Piell was held when he spotted a man in black armor with long dark hair followed by two commando droids on the other end of the hallway. They were approaching the cell. Cindo knew that as soon as they noticed that the cell was empty they would raise the alarm and it would be all over. He had to act quickly.

He jumped around the corner. The droids immediately reacted by putting their guns up and aiming them at him. They were going to start shooting instantly but the man raised his hand commanding them not to. "What do we have here? A visitor perhaps?" The pale man with a furrowed face said. His orange eyes emotionlessly peered into Cindo's mask. "Not very talkative are you?" the man said disappointedly. Cindo kept on standing there silently. "Well, it seems like we're done here. Guards, kill this man if you will," he said gesturing at Cindo.

The droids began shooting wildly at him, but the bolts stopped midair. "Oh… A Jedi. How fun," the man exclaimed followed by hysterical laughter. Cindo used the Force to propel the blaster bolts back at the three of them. The man managed to pull out his red lightsaber and block a few of them, but the droids weren't so lucky. "Now this will be fun!" he yelled while twisting and tilting his head in random directions while also continuing on laughing. Cindo ignited his two lightsabers and waited for him to attack. "S-such beautiful colours. I'll add them to my wall," he said before running at Cindo. He blocked the man's initial flurry of attacks with ease. His fighting style was fast and erratic. Trying to get in as many swings as he could he kept on moving closer and closer to Cindo who upon seeing that the man got too close sidestepped to the left and pushed him forward making him stumble across Cindo's legs and fall to the floor.

The man jumped up on his feet almost instantly and lunged at him again with another flurry of fast attacks. The man attempted to shock him with lighting but Cindo absorbed it with his blue saber. He pushed the man away with the Force and fell a few steps back. Cindo put joined the two of his lightsabers into one. The man ran at him again, but this time he found himself suspended in the air with invisible hands gripping his neck. Cindo began slowly approaching him with his left arm extended and clenched and his right carrying the ignited saber. Before Cindo could strike down the deluded man, he used the Force to throw the droid bodies that were behind Cindo at him, knocking him down to the floor and freeing himself from the force choke.

He massaged his neck to relieve some of the pain. "You thought you could beat me?" he said before once again laughing. He jabbed his lightsaber at Cindo who was lying on the ground motionlessly. Before the saber could reach Cindo he sprung to life and rolled to the left, the lightsaber missing him by mere millimeters. He ignited one blade and cut the man's hand off. He began screaming and stumbling around the corridor gripping the cut off arm with his other arm. Cindo got up and used the Force to slam the man into the ceiling and down into the floor. The man began pulling himself away from Cindo trying to somehow escape from the situation. "It's not yet time, it's not yet time," he began repeating as he dragged himself down the hallway Cindo following him. Cindo attempted to impale the man, but he noticed something flying towards him from behind. He ducked and a second after heard a lightsaber ignite. He looked up and saw the Twi'lek stick the man's own lightsaber into his back, extinguishing the lightsaber and sitting back down right after, blood still slowly dripping from some of her wounds.

Cindo heard the clanking of droids approaching them. As soon as the two droids turned the corner they were cut in half by Cindo. He then kneeled down beside her. "You alright?" he asked her and she looked up at him emotionlessly. "I'll be fine," she answered. "Why did you save me?" Cindo didn't even know the complete answer himself, but he knew something was different about her. "I haven't met many Sith, but from those I've met, I could only sense anger and hatred. You weren't so different until you began crying and when I found you here. I only sensed regret and sadness then and I can feel that now as well. There's still hope for you," Cindo told her. "I will not become a Jedi," she told him clenching her stomach are with one hand. "Not a Jedi. Something else. I'll explain everything when we get you out of here," Cindo told her looking around to see and hear if anybody was close.

"We?" she asked her face contorted in pain. "Doesn't matter. We need to catch up. Can you walk?" he asked her. "I think I can," she said. Cindo helped her get up and put her beside the wall, so she could lean on it. "I'll just quickly put all of the dead droids and this guy into the cell and we'll be on the move."

* * *

The Twi'lek and Cindo didn't speak a word on the way. Cindo resorted to using hand gestures as to not alert any droids. His wrist comm started beeping again. "What's the situation?" Cindo asked. "Cindo we have the rest of the captives and are making our way to the landing platform. How close are you?" Obi-Wan asked. "I'm close. I'll wait for you at the exit," Cindo said ending the transmission.

A few minutes later Cindo, HK, R2D2 and his droids and the Twi'lek were waiting at the exit to the landing platform, planning their escape. They were going to a simple prisoner transfer. The rest of the group arrived with the rescued captives and they began making their move. They hid all the weapons in backpacks and gave them to the droids. They all walked out in a column with their hands behind their backs, except for the droids and Cindo who were walking beside them acting as guards. A droid approached them. "Stop right there! What are you doing with these prisoners?" the droid asked. "You dare talk to me like that droid!" Cindo yelled back, pointing a finger at it. "Oh, you must be Commander Crix. I'm very sorry sir. But I still have to know what's going on," the droid said carefully. "Prisoner transfer," Cindo said simply. "Sir, there is no scheduled prisoner transfer…" The droid was cut off by Cindo. "If you have a problem with this talk to Count Dooku about it. He's the one that ordered them transferred," Cindo said. "I didn't know sir. Do you need help with loading the prisoners?" the droid said. "No, thank you. You may return to your duties," Cindo said tapping it on its head and walking away.


	22. Chapter 21

Chapter 21: Second Chance (20 BBY)

"I would call this a job well done," Anakin said, sitting in the pilot's seat with his hands crossed across his chest looking into the blue vastness of hyperspace. "I couldn't agree more, Master," Ahsoka said, leaning on his chair from behind. Wilhuff Tarkin, the captain they rescued and all the other rescued officers were sitting and standing around in the cockpit as well. "I do have to applaud the tactics and planning that went into this. The mission was executed rather perfectly, Master Skywalker," Tarkin commented, sitting in the copilot's seat with his back straightened. The man never seemed to be relaxed.

"Almost perfectly," Anakin remarked silently, but not so that other people couldn't hear it. "If I may inquire Master Skywalker, what do you mean by almost perfectly?" Tarkin asked him. "Well, you may have noticed that we have taken on an uninvited visitor."

"What do you plan on doing with her?" Cindo asked leaning on the door frame with his arms crossed. "To be honest? I have no idea," Obi-Wan said, looking at the red Twi'lek who was sleeping in the bed with her hands cuffed. He was sitting across the room from her to keep watch, just in case she tried anything. "The law says that she has to go to jail and await a trial, which will probably end up being execution," Obi-Wan said looking at the floor with a blank expression. Meanwhile, the Twi'lek still winced from pain every once in a while. Her wounds still weren't treated as the only medic on board, Viper squad's Lek, used the small amount of supplies she brought to treat the other captives.

"Although she is a Sith it pains me terribly to look at her in this state," Obi-Wan said. "I can try helping her. I've never tried force healing on a sentient being," Cindo told Obi-Wan. "It is better than doing nothing. Be my guest," Obi-Wan said gesturing at the bed. Cindo accepted the invitation and got down to his knees before the bed. He put his hands above the Twi'lek and closed his eyes. He used all the Force energy he could amass to attempt to at least somewhat heal some of the cuts and gashes.

From Cindo's perspective, nothing could be seen as his eyes were closed but Obi-Wan witnessed a most intriguing event as he would call it. A very light aura formed around Cindo's hands and the Twi'lek's cuts started shining in the lightest yellow color. Cindo could sense her heartbeat stabilizing as well as hearing her breathing calm down as well. He opened his eyes, stood up and took a few steps back, so he was standing next to Obi-Wan. "I guess it worked," Cindo said, slightly surprised. "It most certainly did," Obi-Wan said with a pleased look on his face.

"Isn't there something else we can do for her. Something's telling me that she never wanted any of this," Cindo said. "How can you be sure?" Obi-Wan asked. "I can sense that she regrets everything she's done. I don't know what she's done but promise me that you won't let her go to jail and be executed if I found out she hasn't done terrible things," Cindo said, moving towards the door. "And how would you know if she's telling the truth?" Kenobi asked.

"Don't worry about that. I'll know. And besides, I have a method that worked before and it will work again although it is something you Jedi might not be happy about me doing," Cindo said looking back at Obi-Wan with his right hand rested on the door frame. "And what would that be?" Obi-Wan asked with a raised brow. "A little technique I call mind probing," Cindo told Obi-Wan. "Sounds unpleasant," Obi-Wan commented. "Oh, it is. If the person tries to resist it," Cindo explained as he began moving through the door. He turned around one last time after he exited the room. "Find me when she wakes up," Cindo said. Kenobi nodded in response and Cindo closed the door.

"Who's the Twi'lek?" a voice behind him asked. He carefully turned around and saw Ahsoka standing in the hallway with her hands on her hips and a slightly angry expression on her face. "She's one of the Sith I fought on Odessen," Cindo explained running a hand through his hair. "So, how's everyone holding up?" he asked, trying to get rid of the awkward silence that manifested after his last statement. "Oh," she said, her eyes meeting his after she stared blankly into the floor. "They're fine. No casualties and we managed to free all the prisoners," she told him. "Have you learned anything from her?" she asked Cindo awkwardly. "No, she was too tired to even stand when we got on the ship, so we just put her to rest. Obi-Wan is watching over her until she wakes up," he explained. She kept staring at him, which made him very uncomfortable. "Uhm, I'm gonna go check up on Razer and his guys," he said as he began slowly maneuvering his way around her.

* * *

The ship exited hyperspace outside Coruscant's atmosphere. Hundreds of ships full of people trying to make a profit, refugees and even tourists were approaching the large city planet. There were also hundreds of ships – transports, freighters and military vessels leaving the planet. Coruscant was always busy and it was seen as a planet where you could start anew, leaving all of your past mistakes behind, if they didn't break the law of course. Long lanes of speeders flying on preprogrammed routes could be seen cluttering the skies of the city. The sunset gave the large buildings a beautiful orange shine.

Cindo approached the quarters again. Obi-Wan was waiting outside the door for him. He already called for him to talk to her, so they only exchanged nods before Cindo entered the room. He would have to make this quick since he only had a couple of minutes before they would arrive at the temple. He took the chair that Obi-Wan was sitting on and moved it closer to the bed and sat down. "The Jedi on this ship said that they have never seen you before. Was Odessen your first mission?" Cindo asked and she nodded in response. "How did you become a Sith? Who trained you?" Cindo asked. This time there was no response. "Listen. You have the power to change your life now. Answer my questions and I promise no harm will be done to you," Cindo reassured her placing his hand on her left shoulder. She looked up and met his eyes. "I… Me and my brother were taken from our homes when the separatists invaded Ryloth," she said. "They took us to some forest planet and trained us in a temple. There were fifteen of us. We were to be trained as the replacements for the Sith that died. I didn't want to do it, but t-they they…" she took a brief pause and swept the tears that formed in her eyes. "They tortured us if we didn't obey. They weakened us to a state where we followed every order. They taught us to use our anger and fear as weapons," she said before beginning to sob. "It's okay. Tell me something. I saw your brother slaughter innocents for his enjoyment. Did you…" he was unable to finish the sentence because she began to speak. "It was our initiation test. To prove that we could do what it takes. Before we were capture he was the kindest person I knew. But he wasn't the same person after all the "conditioning" he received. He was excited at the aspect of slaughtering civilians. Once we landed outside the village they greeted us. As a response, they got my brother's saber to their gut. He went on to slaughter as many as he could, while I stood there helplessly. I couldn't… no, I didn't want to take an innocent life. I tried to silently evacuate as many people as I could while Galak kept slaughtering them in blind rage. I could hear his maniacal laughter to the other side of the village followed by screaming unlike any I've heard before," she said, her voice and body shaking.

"What happened after your mission?" Cindo asked. "We were transported to Serenno to see Count Dooku. And that's where I met Derel. He was the only one that was kind to me. Eventually, we fell in love or at least that's what I thought," she said, her face transforming from a sad one to an angry one in an instant. "What happened?" Cindo said. "He betrayed me. After we failed we reported to Count Dooku. Derel had the option to save me, give me another chance, but he betrayed me. He told the Count that me and Galak were failures. And that's how I ended up in the Citadel, being tortured by Crix for his amusement," she said, clenching her fists. "Was Crix the man you killed in front of me in the Citadel?" Cindo asked. "Yes. And I would do it again and again and again if I could," she told him. "I'm sorry for bringing this up, but… Why did it hurt you, so much when I killed your brother? You said he was a monster," Cindo said with as much sympathy as he could. "He was the only family I had left," she answered. She didn't say anything more about since it was obviously a sensitive topic. "I see," Cindo said, looking at the ground and trying to make sense of everything.

"And how do I know you're not lying about everything?" he asked her with a raised brow. She smirked at him. "I already lost everything. What can I gain from lying." Not finding any more questions Cindo stood up and left the room. Obi-Wan was waiting for him where he last saw him.

"No need to summarize. I heard everything," Obi-Wan said. "I can sense that she's telling the truth. You?" Cindo looked back at the Twi'lek who was hopelessly sitting on the bed with her hands cuffed. "I can sense the same thing. So, what can we do?" Cindo asked Obi-Wan, who in response closed the door. "Suggestions?" Obi-Wan said. "She said that she doesn't want to become a Jedi, but I think that's the best option for her," Cindo said leaning on the wall on the opposite side of the door. "The Jedi won't take her. With the whole war thing going on and Sith killing thousands of people, they won't trust her no matter how true her words are. Me, Master Yoda and Plo might agree, but the others won't," Obi-Wan explained, performing hand gestures to emphasize his points.

"Then what can we do? She can't go to jail she's done nothing wrong, and we can't let a person with Sith training loose," Cindo said with a worried expression. "Perhaps you could train her," Obi-Wan suggested. "Me? No, I can't. I just came out of training," Cindo said. "And look at what you've accomplished already. If you teach her the same amount of control you posses then she can become as great of an asset as you are," he determined. "That will take years to accomplish," Cindo protested. "It's either that or she goes to jail. It's your choice," Kenobi said, before leaving for the cockpit, leaving Cindo to ponder what to do.

* * *

After they landed, and the soldiers left the vessel Cindo approached Obi-Wan who was in the front of the ship, talking to Anakin and Ahsoka. "Obi-Wan, can we talk?" Cindo said standing in the doorway. "Of course. I'll be right back," he said to Anakin and Ahsoka who were continuing their conversation.

"Did you make your decision?" Obi-Wan asked once they were out of hearing range. "Yes. I'll train her," Cindo said determinedly. "Good. Then I will arrange a credit transfer to your account, so you can get her the proper accommodations," Obi-Wan said. "Wait, what? Can't she just stay at the barracks?" Cindo asked with a confused expression. "No. I'm afraid the training will have to remain a secret," Obi-Wan said while stroking his beard. "The council was reluctant to take you. What do you think they'll say when they hear that there's another one of you," Kenobi explained.

"How do I get her out of here if this is supposed to be a secret?" Cindo asked him. "Nobody outside the ship's crew knows about her and I said that I would make the report for the mission." "That still doesn't make things easier," Cindo said, frowning. "You'll think of something, I'm sure," Obi-Wan said with a slight smile on his face. He noticed that Cindo seemed reluctant on seeing this through. "Otherwise I can always take her to…" "No, that will not be needed. I'll figure something out," Cindo reassured him. "Good luck," he said, before leaving Cindo alone in the ship with Anakin and Ahsoka.

He went back to the room where the Twi'lek was and used the Force to get her into an unconscious state. He then picked her up and began carrying her off the ship. "Where are you going?" an obviously irritated Ahsoka said, while Cindo was walking down the ramp. "Uhm… I'm… gonna… take her to the detention facility," he quickly, said hoping that she wouldn't want to come with him. "Ok," she said, her face transforming from an angry one to a happy one in an instant. " _What's up with her?"_ he asked himself as he carried the Twi'lek away.

* * *

"What? Where am I?" the Twi'lek asked as she was getting into a sitting position on a bed. "Your new home for the time being," Cindo, who was leaning on a wall eating a ration bar, said. Her new abode was actually just one small dark room with a fresher being the only room separated from the main one for privacy reasons. The room only had one light source and a large window with halfway closed shutters, through which shone a soft, orange-colored light. A bed, some cupboards, a wardrobe, a few chairs and a table were all there was in the room.

"Aren't I supposed to be in prison or something like that?" she asked. "After hearing your story me and a friend concluded that you deserve another chance, if you're willing to take it of course," he said moving towards one of the chairs, turning it, so it faced her and sat down on it. "I already told you, I don't want to become a Jedi," she said. "The Jedi would rather see you rot in a cell or dead. I can offer you something else," Cindo said, his hands clasped in front of him. "And what would that be?"

"Imagine being a Jedi, but with no limitations as to what you can feel, and which powers you can use," Cindo tried explaining to her in an unsophisticated way. She adopted a thoughtful expression. "Sounds interesting," she said before taking a short pause. "Back on Ryloth when a Jedi came to our village to search for us our family hid us. They didn't want to give us up. We didn't understand why they didn't want us to join a force that fought for good. They explained to us that although Jedi were great warriors they were forced to forget what emotions are and that they were forbidden to form attachments," she said.

"It is like that. I used to be one of them but my fate lied elsewhere," he said. The only thing that could be heard for a minute or two after that was the buzzing of aircars and speeders passing by. "I'm Cindo," he said looking up at her. "Naomi," she said returning the look.


	23. Chapter 22

Chapter 22: Second Initiate (20BBY)

"When do we begin?" Naomi asked Cindo right after their introduction. "Tomorrow. Get some proper rest first. I'm gonna leave some credits here in case you want to get some food otherwise here are some ration packs in case you don't feel like going out," Cindo said, putting said things on the table. "You aren't staying?" she asked, surprised.

"No. Your training and freedom have to stay secret," he said. "I'll try to come here to give you lessons every day, and if I won't be able to come here I'll leave a holomessage with instructions," he said, slowly moving towards the door while facing her. "You need anything else?" he asked. "No," she answered looking through the window. "Thank you for this. I never thought I would get a chance to make things right," she added after a short pause, turning her head towards Cindo. "Don't mention it. See you tomorrow," he said before closing the door behind him.

* * *

The location Cindo picked out was an hour of walking away from the barracks. The building itself was very inconspicuous, being one in a set of six identical looking housing units. He greeted the two usual Coruscant Defense Force clones at the entrance and then proceeded inside. He made his way to the mess hall, close to his quarters.

The mess hall itself was a wide-open room with a serving area and rows upon rows of tables and benches. At that time the hall was halfway full of clones who were there to get their dinner. The food mostly consisted of supplements instead of actual ingredients, a far cry from what the Jedi at the temple were served back when Cindo was a youngling. He joined the line and waited until he got his plate of food. He went and sat down beside Fisk and Glitch who were alone at one of the tables.

It was the first time even after weeks of being at the barracks that Cindo could see Glitch's face. A narrow-faced young man with a long nose, green-brownish eyes and a buzz cut was what was hidden under the helmet. "Good evening," Cindo greeted as he placed his tray down on the table. "Hello, sir," Fisk greeted. His hair was usually messy, sometimes even obstructing his brown eyes. He also had a burn mark that adorned his right cheek all the way to his ear.

"Fisk, I told you to not call me that off mission and even on mission as a matter of fact," Cindo said as he was sitting down. "Cindo will suffice?" Fisk asked, smiling slightly. "Yup," Cindo answered, putting a tasteless piece of protein supplement into his mouth. He noticed Glitch staring down into his datapad. "Glitch what's wrong?" Cindo asked. "Nothing. I was just checking the report. What were we talking about?" he asked putting the datapad down on the bench. "Nothing in particular. What were you doing with that datapad?" Cindo said. "I was just checking the report about the mission. Still can't believe we didn't trip a single alarm," Glitch responded.

"Yeah, we're amazing what can you do. Saved Master Piell, all the officers and that girl," Fisk said. "What happened to her anyway?" Glitch said. "I took her to prison. She was a Sith," Cindo lied. "So, that's why you weren't here," Glitch said. "Where did you think I was?"

"We thought you were with Ahsoka," Glitch told him. "Why would I be with Ahsoka?" Cindo asked with a raised brow. "Doesn't matter," Fisk quickly said, giving Glitch a weary look. Cindo's day was confusing and stressful to say the least. First Ahsoka's weird acting then him being forced to retrain a Sith as a Warden in secret and then this. He tried making sense of it but felt too tired to do so.

"So, where's the rest of the squad anyway?" Cindo asked trying to lighten the mood and change the topic. "Razer's probably sleeping being the old man he is," Fisk started. Razer was older than anyone there at the age of thirty-six. Cindo learned that Razer used to be in some judicial special forces before they got disbanded. "Lek is probably checking up on Fives and Cody in the medical ward and Hawker is either at the shooting range or force knows where," Fisk continued. Hawker was the squad's marksman specializing in long range weaponry. He was part of the same special forces department as Razer, but they weren't on the same squad neither were they ever on a mission together before the war.

"By the way Glitch you going to tell me about that thing we talked about on the cliff?" Cindo asked. "Sure. Find me tomorrow and we can talk about it," he answered reluctantly. "Good. I'll see you boys tomorrow then," Cindo said, about to lift his half-finished meal. "Ay, ay. You gonna finish that? Because if not I'm willing to take that plate off your hands," Fisk asked. Cindo handed him the plate, said goodbye and left the mess hall.

"HK was anybody looking for me when I was gone?" Cindo asked the droid which was standing guard at the door to Cindo's quarters. That's what the droid would usually do if Cindo was in the room or if it didn't know where he was. "No," the droid answered simply, ignoring the master part as ordered. Cindo opened the door. "You know you don't need to stand here all the time," Cindo said. "Then what would you have me do? Stare at you while you sleep?" HK commented. "Good point," Cindo said before entering the room.

He turned on the lights to light up the small room. It was a bit similar to his old room at the temple. A bed, table, a wardrobe which he didn't use, and a fresher. Ahsoka also brought him some mats when he first arrived, so he wouldn't need to meditate or do whatever he would do on them on the cold steel floor. After all that's happened he needed a rest, so he put his coat on the chair and his armored boots next to the bed and then he proceeded to lie down for some well-deserved rest.

* * *

The next morning Cindo did his everyday routine. An hour or so of meditation, then the gym and then he went either to his room, the rooftop of the barracks or outside to practice saber techniques. After he was finished he decided to pay Glitch a visit. He went to Viper squad's room and knocked on the door. The door opened a few seconds later and Glitch appeared in the doorway. "Hey. Is anybody else inside?" Cindo asked. "Nah, I'm alone. Come in," he said with a hand gesture. The room was logically larger than his. Three bunk beds lined the walls. The one in the far right corner of the room had a bunch of random things stored on it. Glitch sat down on the second bed on the left and Cindo sat down on the bad opposite of his.

"You wanted to talk about the thing I said on the cliff?" he predicted. "Yes," Cindo answered simply. "It's nothing mind blowing it's just a fact. When I was recruited I was far off from being a commando or even being able to join the military," he said. "I was seventeen when Razer found me. I was in a juvenile jail on Corellia then for slicing into places I wasn't supposed to. I was a street rat, so I was barely able to survive. I joined a gang and we began robbing stores. Over time my knowledge and skills increased and we went in for a job that wouldn't only secure us and our community food and water, but it would also provide us credits. I managed to slice through their security systems which was deemed impossible, but the job eventually went south and me and a couple of guys got caught," Glitch explained.

"Isn't it illegal for you to be in the army at the age of seventeen?" Cindo asked in bewilderment. "Yes, it is. But luckily my birthday was two days after I got recruited by Razer, so I was able to join. I went on my first mission not even knowing how to use a blaster and I'm still not fully confident in myself till this day," he said looking down at the ground blankly. "The only reason you're here is to avoid being in prison?" Cindo said. "It was, until I met this team. They believe in me and I won't let them down," he said firmly. "You didn't seem to be so sure of yourself on that cliff," Cindo stated, making Glitch look up at him. "I experience panic attacks although very rarely. At the beginning it used to be much worse. I would refuse to move from cover if I even heard a shot," he explained, remembering the events and smiling slightly as a result.

The door to the room opened. "Glitch get up. Razer wants to see you," Lek, the medic of the squad said. She was an oval-faced Pantoran, with black eyes, yellow tattoos under her eyes, thin nose and short wispy ashen-colored hair. "Good talk. See you later," Glitch said, before standing up and running after her.

* * *

Cindo entered the rented apartment room and saw Naomi sitting on the bed eating one of the ration packs he left the other night. "Your face looks different," he commented, noticing that the black marks on her face were gone. "Took a lot of scrubbing to get those off," she said, turning her head so she faced him. "How long until you're done?" he asked. "I just finished," she answered, standing up and putting the plate down on the table. "So, what's the first lesson or whatever?" she asked. "The first thing will be your initiation. There isn't really a place where we could do this properly, so we'll just do it here," he told her. "I'm not really into rituals," she commented.

"Don't worry there's no magic or mystical Force stuff involved. Just come over here and kneel," he said gesturing at the area in front of him. She sighed and then did as he said. "This'll only take a minute. Repeat after me."

"Flowing through all, there is balance," he said. She repeated after them.

"There is no meaning to a life without passion, yet I will not let passion destroy me." She repeated.

"Power is gained through darkness, yet I will not let darkness control me." She repeated.

"Peace is gained through light, yet I will not let light obstruct me." She repeated.

"There is freedom in life, there is purpose in death." She repeated.

"The Force is all things and I am the Force," he finally said, and she repeated.

"Good. You may now rise and begin your training initiate," he said and she stood up. "Interesting code," she said, being forced to look up to see his face even though she was standing. "You want me to explain it?" Cindo asked. "I can make most of it out by myself, but I'm wondering how the darkness part of the code works in practice? Because it's sounds like the thing that Sith do."

"It's a far cry from what the Sith are taught. They lose themselves in their emotions, we use them as fuel, making them grant us power and the will to fight but we do not lose ourselves in them. We control them," Cindo explained. "The process of learning this shouldn't be too hard for you since it seems like can already use the Dark side of the Force and not lose control while doing so."

"Can we start already?" she said excitedly. "Of course. Follow me," he said before leaving the apartment, Naomi following close behind. They went to the roof of the housing unit. Cindo sat down and began meditating. "What am I supposed to do?" she asked, looking at him in bewilderment. "Meditate," Cindo said, sitting down and facing her. "How do I do that?" she asked and Cindo raised a brow. "You don't know how to meditate?" "No."

He stood up and walked over to her. "Get into a comfortable position," he said. She sat down and crossed her legs. "Now close your eyes, exhale and focus on the Force." She did as he ordered. "How can I focus with all of the buzzing and chatter in the background?" she asked irritably. "And what's meditation supposed to achieve anyway?"

"Your connection to the Force will become stronger, that's the first effect. The second effect is that you'll be able to more easily control your emotions. And third it will help you with remaining focused for longer periods of time," he explained. "Now, take a deep breath, close your eyes and connect with the Force. Let it flow through you," he advised before moving off to the side. He observed as she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Meditating in these conditions was hard, but with an even more irritating buzzing noise in her apartment she wouldn't be able to focus at all. At least here the sounds were somewhat distant and the air was fresher. As fresh as it can be on a city planet that is. He knew from experience that meditating for the first time lasted around an hour or so, so he decided to meditate as well.

* * *

"Hey, HK. Is Cindo in there?" Ahsoka asked. She didn't even know why she was there herself. "No Lady Tano. Cindo is not currently in his quarters," HK answered. "You can just call me Ahsoka, Hk. Why aren't you with Cindo if he isn't here?" she said with a raised brow. "He forbade from going with him," HK said. "That's… unusual," she muttered to herself knowing all too well that Cindo wouldn't leave HK behind no matter what. He must've been doing something nobody knew about if he didn't let HK go with him.

"Can you tell Cindo that I was looking for him?" she requested. "I will do as you request," HK said with a nod.

* * *

After an hour Cindo awakened from his meditation, only to see that Naomi was still sitting there. As soon as he began walking over to her she opened her eyes and got up as well. "How do you feel?" Cindo asked as he was walking. "Calmer and I feel like I'm more in control. How much time passed?" she said. "An hour? It only felt like a couple of minutes," she commented with a confused expression. "That's the beauty of meditation. It doesn't only help you improve, it helps you go through boredom fast," Cindo said, making her smile and let out a short giggle. Meditation definitely helped her and even her eyes seemed different. They changed from the standard yellow color of Sith eyes to a bright red color, proving that she hasn't completely fallen to the dark side when she was with the Sith. "Is red your natural eye color?" he asked. "Yes. Why are you asking?" she said. "I don't know. Never seen that eye color before," he said.

"Well, I am quite unique," she said, putting her hands on her hips and smiling. "I cannot argue with that," he said. "So, what's next?" she asked excitedly. "That was all I had planned for today. I don't think it would be safe doing anything that required a lot of movement because your wounds could still reopen," Cindo explained. "Don't worry about my wounds. I'm a fast healer," she reassured him. He gave her a questionable look before surrendering. "Fine. You ready?" he said. "Ready for wha…" She was unable to finish the sentence as Cindo rand and jumped over from the roof they were standing on to the roof next to it. "Come on," he said, beckoning her to follow him. She quickly stretched before easily making the jump and running after him. They scaled walls up and down, jumped from roof to roof, from roof down to the alleys below, running through alleyways jumping over every obstacle possible without stopping. They made a lap that spanned the whole district. They arrived back on the roof where they started.

Cindo had his hands on his knees and was breathing heavily while Naomi seemed to only be two thirds as exhausted as him. "You have stamina, I'll give you that," he said. "Thanks. What was this supposed to achieve anyway?" she asked. "I just showed you what every morning from now on until your training is complete is going to look like," he explained. "How long is that going to take?" she asked. "It took five years for me, but I was only thirteen when I began training. Speaking of age how old are you?" he asked her. Having not seen many Twi'leks he didn't know how to properly determine their age. "Seventeen," she answered. "And you already have some experience with using the Dark side of the Force, so your training shouldn't last as long as mine did," he told her.

"What should I do for the rest of the day? Any tasks or anything?" she said. "The nights are usually free, but I can maybe provide you with holo-books to speed up the training process," he offered. "Holo-books sound fine. It's not like I'll have anything else to do during the night," she told him. "Good. Your lessons will usually take place in the afternoon," he explained to her. "I'll have to go now, before people start becoming suspicious," he said. "Ok," she said with a bit of disappointed expression which she tried to hide but failed. "So, tomorrow afternoon?" she asked. "Of course."


	24. Chapter 23

Chapter 23: Freedom Fighters (20 BBY)

"Ahsoka was here. She said she wanted to speak to you," HK said when he saw Cindo approaching. "Did she say what she wanted to talk about?" he asked. "No, but she seemed worried," HK answered. "I'll talk to her in the morning," Cindo said opening the door to his quarters. "Enjoy your night," HK commented, standing guard at the door with his hands behind his back.

* * *

"Stop right there! Entrance to the Temple without approval is forbidden. What's your business?" a temple guard, who was guarding the front entrance to the Jedi Temple said. "I have business with Master Kenobi and Padawan Tano," he said to the guard, before attempting to walk past him. The guard moved and nudged Cindo backwards. "No entrance without approval from a Jedi," the guard stated again fearlessly. "He's with me," Ahsoka called out, emerging out of the temple. The guard gave Cindo one last glance before reluctantly moving out of the way.

"What do you want to talk about?" Cindo asked as they were walking side to side through the temple. "We'll talk somewhere private." As HK observed she seemed worried about something. They entered the quarters. The room was fairly simple as was every room in the temple and as most of the rooms, it was dimly lit by half closed shutters. Ahsoka led him to another separate part of the room where there was another bed. "You sharing the room with Anakin?" he asked when he entered the smaller room. It only had a bed and a meditation mat. "Yeah," she answered looking at the wall. At this point, Cindo was getting worried as well. She sat down on the bed and gestured for him to join her.

"What's the matter?" Cindo asked. "Ever since you came back from the mission you've been distant. Me and the others are worried about you," she said. "Don't worry about me I'm fine. it's only been two days since we came back," he reassured her. "Really? Because you've never been a person that just goes away from everything. Is something bothering you?" she asked placing her hand on his. He looked up at her with a confused expression, not knowing what to do. Was he supposed to tell the truth or lie? "No. I'm fine, really. I'm just taking my time to explore Coruscant and train is all," he said, trying to conceal his lie. "Oh. Well sorry for bothering you. It's just that you've been away for so long and we missed you," she said. Cindo put a reassuring arm on her shoulder. "I know," he said. "If you ever need to contact me or just want to talk contact me over my comm okay?" "Okay," she said with a nod. "Good. Now I need to find Obi-Wan. Do you know where he is?" Cindo said. "Come with me," she said as she jumped on her feet and left the room with Cindo in tow.

Conveniently Obi-Wan was in the library. Cindo said goodbye to Ahsoka before joining Obi-Wan and Kyle at their table. "Kyle could you please leave me and Cindo alone for a bit. I'll contact you when I'll need you back here," Obi-Wan said. Kyle stood up. "Of course, Master," he said with a bow before leaving the library.

"How are the lessons going?" Cindo asked as he was sitting down on the chair opposite to Obi-Wan. "Good. Kyle's eager to learn anything I can teach him," Obi-Wan reported happily. "Good to know," Cindo said and Obi-Wan nodded in response. He then checked if nobody was listening to them before leaning closer to Cindo. "How's she doing? Any problems?" he asked. "No problems. She's eager to learn as well. And it also might not take as long to train her as I expected," Cindo reported. "Nice to hear. Is there anything you require for her training?" Obi-Wan asked. "Now that you mention it. I could use some holobooks. I already have a list prepared," he said, pulling a datapad from under his robe and sliding it across the table to Obi-Wan, who picked it up and inspected the list. "This is doable. Although some of these might be hard to acquire for a long period of time," he said scrolling through the list. "I'll deliver them to your quarters as soon as I can get them." Cindo stood up and said, "Thanks for the help. Have a nice day," and left the library. There was a guard outside the library waiting to escort him outside.

* * *

 _A week later…_

Cindo was standing outside a cantina. It was the place where Obi-Wan said he would meet him. Even though it was still dark as it was early in the morning, he could see the cloaked figure approaching from a mile away. He handed him a datapad when he got close. "Now this is unexpected," Cindo said looking at the datapad. Obi-Wan must've copied the holobooks which was forbidden without getting consent from the Jedi council. "Many would say that I crossed the line, but it's for a good cause," he said. "Oh, and come by the temple later today." "Another mission?" he asked. "Yes. I'll see you there," he said with a small smile before wandering off into the depths of one of Coruscant's many dark alleyways.

* * *

Cindo arrived at the housing unit later that day to deliver the datapad. Naomi's training was going well and her wounds were healing quickly. He went up the usual narrow stairs before entering a small corridor that led to the apartment. He knocked on the door and after a few moments they opened and revealed Naomi standing on the other side of the doorway with new attire. She was wearing a dark T-shirt which was underneath a very thin layer of dark grey leather-like armor which covered her midsection, chest and shoulders, where they took on a role as subtle shoulder pauldrons. Her hands were wrapped in black cloth which went all of the way from her wrist to the top of her bicep area, leaving only a little skin visible between the wraps and shirt which was sticking out from under the armor. She was also wearing dark trousers with black leather boots and a black shemagh around her neck which she could pull up to mask the bottom half of her face.

"You look… nice," he said, making her smile. "Thank you. And don't worry this didn't cost a lot. I still have credits to spare," she said taking some out from her pocket. "One less thing I have to worry about. Here take this," he said handing her the datapad. "What's this?" she asked. "The books I promised. Courtesy of my Jedi friend," he answered. "You're talking like you're not staying today," she said disappointedly. Cindo sighed. "Yeah, you're right. As much as I would like to be here to teach you personally, I have a mission to do," he explained. "Try not to do anything stupid while I'm gone, okay?" he requested, and she nodded. "Thank you. Hopefully, I'll be back soon. Otherwise, there's enough material on that datapad to keep you occupied for weeks," he said. "Good luck on your mission," she said, and he nodded, closing the door and leaving the housing unit after.

Cindo entered the council chamber a bit late, missing the first part of the briefing. Everybody in the darkened room gazed at him with frustrated expressions when he entered. "Sorry I'm late," he said quietly before moving to the left side of the door. Most of the council was present and Anakin, Ahsoka, Kyle, and Razy were standing in the middle of the room with a hologram depicting two men next to them. The shorter one seemed more like a Coruscant noble's son rather than a fighter. They were both wearing some type of worn combat attire.

"Unfortunately, the only way to reclaim Onderon will be through armed struggle. We lack sufficient hardware and supplies," the shorter one reported. "Onderon is in your king's rule. At the outbreak of the Clone war he chose to align it with the separatists," Obi-Wan said calmly. "Our true king has been silenced," the other man with dark brown skin protested with a raised fist to emphasize his point. "The one you recognize is a traitor and a separatist minion." He turned to the group who was standing in the middle of the room. "We need your help to survive this," he pleaded.

"Find a way, we shall," Yoda said with his hand on his chin. "We await your answer," the groomed kid said, before his eyes met Ahsoka's who was looking at him with a small reassuring smile. Something about how they looked at each other made Cindo feel weird, but he couldn't nail down what he felt. The hologram disappeared, and Anakin took a step forward. "There are pockets of rebels on many of these planets that just guidance. With training and resources they could attack soft targets while the Republic continues to engage them on the battlefield," Anakin said, moving around the room slowly and performing hand gestures to emphasize his points.

Obi-Wan shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "That sounds like terrorism, Anakin," he warned. "Well, I think of it as an insurgency to help realign these planets with the Republic," Anakin said confidently, being sure that this would work. "We can divide the separatist forces and press them on two fronts," Windu said, slowly realizing what Anakin was trying to achieve. "A means to an end, fear cannot be. Stop those who spread terror the Jedi must," Yoda reminded them with his hands placed firmly on his cane. "Indeed," Obi-Wan agreed. "What you're suggesting would open up dangerous possibilities, and we must not train terrorists," he added. "Ehh… rebels," Anakin corrected him.

"How we conduct war is what distinguishes us from others. Funding rebels to overthrow a legitimate government puts innocent lives at risk," Obi-Wan argued. "We can minimize collateral damage by using arms that mainly affect droids," Anakin proposed. "The least we could do is help them defend themselves. Test the tactic while we're at it," Windu said. Him agreeing with Anakin must've been a surprise for everyone. "This could be a great new weapon for us," Anakin said. Cindo could see that Ahsoka felt uncomfortable, her hands being crossed and her face in a thoughtful frown. "Train and observe. Send advisors we will," Yoda ordered. "I'll assemble a team," Anakin said. Obi-Wan jumped up from his chair and started approaching Anakin. "I'm going with you," he said. "What? You don't trust me," Anakin said. " _Here it comes,"_ Cindo thought to himself, remembering all the times they bantered. "Too much," Obi-Wan said with a grin on his face. "That's what worries me," he added, putting a hand on Anakin's shoulder.

"Kenobi, Skywalker. Have a team assembled by tomorrow. We will inform you about any additional developments that may occur," Windu said in his usual emotionless state. "Of course, Master," Anakin said before he and the rest of the people who were standing in the middle of the room bowed and began leaving the room.

Cindo went outside first and sat down on a bench on the opposite side of the hallway. He waited for Obi-Wan to get outside and then joined him. "Why did I need to be here if I wasn't even picked yet?" Cindo asked while they were walking down the hallway. "Well when you came here you nobody was part of the team, there wasn't even a plan in place actually. But now since me and Anakin are picking who goes you're in. And also inform Glitch and Fisk. I have a feeling we'll be needing their expertise on this mission," Obi-Wan requested. "Be here with them tomorrow morning for the briefing," he added. "Of course. See you then," Cindo said before leaving the temple.

* * *

Glitch and Fisk were, of course, delighted to hear that they would be taking part in a mission. It wasn't unlike everything they've done before. They have fought with rebels multiple times but they never trained them. They were tasked with wearing clothing that would look similar to the stuff that the rebels wore. They were both wearing the exact same things. They were similar to Obi-Wan and Anakin in the terms of how they bantered with each other. They were wearing gray and brown shirts with chest armor, armored pants, boots, and gauntlets. They also brought balaclavas to conceal their faces. Their usual DC-17's were replaced by E-5 carbines.

They arrived in the Jedi temple hangar in the morning. There they joined the rest of the team which consisted of Obi-Wan, Anakin, Ahsoka, Kyle, Raz'yel, and Rex. Most of them were helping the clones load boxes onto their two ships. "Isn't this a bit of a big team for a covert operation?" Cindo immediately asked. "I can assure you that everyone here is crucial to the completion of the mission," Anakin explained. "Care to elaborate?" Cindo said. "Me, Obi-Wan, Rex and Ahsoka will overlook the rebel's training. Kyle will teach their slicers how to slice through separatist security and Fisk will teach them how to create anti-droid explosive devices," Anakin said.

"With all due respect General. Shouldn't I handle the slicers?" Glitch asked, confused. "You two and Razy have a different objective. Obi-Wan will brief you when we get to the rebel camp," he explained. The ships began turning on and soon they were on their way to Onderon.

They arrived on Onderon with the cover of darkness. They flew low as to not be detected by any scanners. Cindo was on the ship with Razy, Glitch, and Fisk. Glitch was sitting on the ship's bench, shaking. "I hate jetpacks," he muttered, making Fisk laugh. "What? You scared of heights?" he asked Glitch jokingly who looked up at him with a serious expression. "No. It just isn't safe," he explained. "It's safe if you do it right," Fisk commented. Their conversation was cut off by the pilot. "We're arriving at the drop zone. Get ready," the pilot warned. The copilot meanwhile made his way to the ramp of the ship which was located below the cockpit. The team approached the ramp and waited for the signal. The ship stopped, and the ramp opened. "Go! Go! Go!" the copilot commanded, and they jumped from the ramp down into the Onderonian wilderness below. Cindo and Razy landed easily with the help of the Force. Fisk also managed to land smoothly, while Glitch activated his jetpack too late and hit the ground hard, landing flat on his face.

Razy put a hand in front of his mouth to mask his laughing while Fisk went over to Glitch and helped him up. "Told you it wasn't safe," he said shaking his head and wiping the dust off himself. "You truly are special," Fisk said patting him on the back with as much force as he could. Glitch let out a yelp. "Would you two stop it," Cindo said, his voice slightly muffled by his helmet. "We don't want to attract any unnecessary attention. Put your masks on," Cindo ordered. They put their masks on while Razy put his hood over his head. "Do you have to deal with this every day?" he asked while they began making their way through the forest to join the rest of the team. "Yes," Cindo answered simply, staying low in the grass.

Then all of the sudden they heard multiple neighs in the distance and ran towards them. They ran through some bushes and ran right into Anakin and Rex which were encircled by two horse-like creatures called Dalgos and multiple armed men. "Identify yourselves!" a woman with brown skin demanded. Anakin put his hood down. "It's alright. We're friends," he reassured her. Then Ahsoka and Obi-Wan dropped down from the treetops putting down their hoods as well. "I'm Commander Tano. We're here to help you take back your planet," Ahsoka explained. "My name is Steela. I'll guide you to our secret base," she said. "Well that was easy," Glitch muttered quietly only to be hit in the shoulder by Fisk. "Be quiet."

* * *

They walked through Onderon's wilderness for hours and hours on end until they finally reached the rebel camp at dawn. There was a large open area with columns which no doubt supported a building until it was destroyed. The columns themselves and the parts of the building that were still standing were overgrown with vines. When they got closer they could a see a few rupings, which were large birds that were domesticated as it seemed. The taller man that Cindo recognized from the hologram was flying one of them as they approached, landing it on a small concrete perch that connected two columns. There were around thirty other rebels in the camp all of which looked at the Jedi and troopers with hopeful expressions as they approached.

"A bit rough around the edges wouldn't you say," Obi-Wan commented. He, Anakin, Ahsoka, Kyle, and Rex were further ahead. "That's why I brought Rex here," Anakin said. "They're not exactly what I would call shinnies sir. But I can work with them," Rex said confidently.

"Do you think they stand a chance?" Razy asked Cindo. "Not now they don't. But when they're done with them they will have to be," Cindo stated. "Yeah. When Fisky boy here tells them how to make things go boom they'll be ready to blow up the capital," Glitch said, making Cindo, Razy and Fisk gaze at him with irritated expressions. "What?" he said with a shrug. "Do you just not know how to listen?" Fisk asked rhetorically. "I am here to teach them how to make improvised EMP devices not blow up the kriffing capital." "Let's just catch up to the rest of the team," Razy said speeding up his walking.

They heard Anakin introduce the part of the team that was with him to the rebels. "Hey. What about us?" Glitch yelled making his way around the two dalgos which separated them from Anakin's part of the team. "Oh, Will you just stop talking!" Fisk yelled at him, grabbing him by the shoulder and shaking him violently. He stopped after he noticed that everybody was looking at them. Most of the rebels harbored amused expressions, while the Jedi looked at them in exasperation. "Sorry, sirs. He can get a bit brainless when he enters new environments," Fisk said putting a hand around Glitch's shoulder as if nothing happened.

"Let me introduce the rest of my team," Anakin began, looking back at Fisk and Glitch briefly with a frustrated expression. "That is Sergeant Glitch, Lieutenant Fisk and commanders Raz'yel and Cindo." "Pleasured to meet you," Cindo said respectfully with a bow. "We're looking forward to taking the fight to those scrapping droids," the man said confidently. "Yes, all in good time," Obi-Wan assured them, knowing that none of them were ready for what they would face.

"Saw. Saw Gerrera," the man introduced himself. "He fashions himself as our leader though no one elected him," she said, punching him in the shoulder lightly. "Well for now we're in charge and there's much to learn," Obi-Wan said before he, Ahsoka and Rex headed off with Saw and Steela. Obi-Wan instead of following them turned towards Cindo's part of the team and approached them. "Fisk join them. I want to talk to these three," Obi-Wan said. "Of course, General," he said, saluting and leaving them after.

"What's our objective?" Razy eagerly asked. Obi-Wan pulled out a portable hologram device and turned it on. A hologram of an outpost carved into a giant rock appeared. There was also a road which separated into two, each one being ray shielded. "This is the checkpoint that leads straight to the capital. The people that pass this checkpoint receive a clearance code which is forwarded to the guards at the city gate. There's no entrance without the clearance code. Your job will be to take over that checkpoint and hold it until we arrive to give us a clearance code. Got it?" Obi-Wan explained to the three of them. "What kind of defenses should we expect?" Cindo asked. "The data on that isn't very accurate. There are usually four guards at each gate and about three two-man patrols. But we don't have intel about the number of droids inside the building. Expect anywhere from zero to fifty," Obi-Wan said. "Where's this checkpoint?" Razy asked. "It's about a days walk in that direction," Obi-Wan said pointing at said direction. "But we just walked for five hours," Glitch protested. "You can take a break or even stay here and help for a day. It will take us a few days at least to finish their training," Obi-Wan told them.

"Anything else we should know?" Cindo asked. "No. That will be all. Good luck," Obi-Wan said before walking off to join the rest of the group. Glitch sighed. "Great. More walking," he muttered. "Look at the positive side. At least we'll be in the shade instead of facing the heat of the sun," Razy said trying to cheer him up. "Yeah. Can't wait for the bugs to start eating me alive again."

* * *

 _Another big thank you to everybody who's been reading this. The story at this point is far different from the one I was planning on doing, and I can guarantee you that it changed for the better. Originally it was just supposed to be Cindo thrown in as either Obi-Wan's or Windu's padawan, and have him go through the clone wars only to die at the end because I didn't know what I wanted to do after. But after thinking it through I made a decision to change everything up and introduce more original characters into the story (hopefully they're decently written) and also add another order into the universe while also greatly expanding the span of the story. And I would also like to thank my friend for drawing the sketch of Cindo for me, because I'm completely inept at such things._


	25. Chapter 24

Chapter 24: The Checkpoint (20 BBY)

"Why does it always have to be me?" Glitch asked rhetorically as he attempted to swat away the bugs that were nibbling at him. Razy went ahead of them to check for trouble. "I thought you liked attention?" Cindo said, a grin forming under his helmet. "Yes. But the right sort of attention, not this!" he retorted. He almost tripped on the roots of the trees a couple of times. "Can't you like push them away with the Force or incinerate them or something?" he begged still swinging his hands around wildly. "Sorry, haven't learned that trick yet," Cindo said moving away bushes with his hand. "How come they aren't eating you alive?" he said. He hit a branch with his head and fell to the ground. "I don't know. Try ignoring them," Cindo recommended, carefully navigating the dense jungle area. "Ignoring them?! Great…" he retorted, wiping sweat off his face.

It was a very hot day, and with the addition of them being in a very humid environment, it made for almost unbearable conditions. They've been navigating the thick jungles of Onderon for half a day now. Before they left they spent a day at the rebel camp per Glitch's request, but as it seemed he still wasn't prepared for the harsh jungle.

"Cindo, be careful. A probe droid's approaching your position," Razy said over the comm. Cindo enhanced his hearing with the Force, as a result, hearing the droid approaching them fast. He turned around and grabbed Glitch, who was still blabbering about the bugs, by the hand and pulled him down into the bushes. He wanted to say something but Cindo put his hand over his face, muffling his cries of annoyance. He finally quieted down when he heard the droid approaching.

After the droid sped past them they stood up. "You could have just told me," Glitch said. "It would've heard us then," Cindo explained before bringing his wrist comm close to his face. "Thanks for the heads up Razy. Keep us posted." "Got it," Razy said over the comm. "Let's go," Cindo commanded, Glitch reluctantly following him.

 _1 hour later…_

"I think we're walking in circles," Glitch said desperately, his shoulders slumped in defeat. "No, we aren't," Cindo said confidently. "How do you know that? I've seen this shrub at least five times now," he said pointing at a Purple king's crown. "The last few we saw had three leaves less," Cindo responded. "Three leaves less? How? What?" Glitch asked, confusion spread along his face and body. "I spent five years living in isolation on a forest planet. I tend to notice such things," Cindo explained. Glitch only shook his head and sighed in response before they began moving onward again.

 _2 hours later…_

"Yes, Glitch, you can take a break," Cindo said. Glitch stood behind him with his hand rested on a tree. "How did you kno…" he began saying before he was interrupted. "I know more about you than I wish I knew," he said, making Glitch smile slightly. Glitch sat down by a tree, leaning on it while Cindo attempted to contact one of the Jedi at the rebel camp.

"Jedi team at the rebel camp this is Cindo. Respond," he said over the comm. "This is Anakin what's your status?" Anakin asked. Cindo could hear droid poppers and droid movements in the background. "We're approaching the target. There have been some unfortunate slowdowns," he reported turning his head to Glitch who raised his arms in defeat. "But we're making good time. We should be able to attack the outpost sometime next morning. How are they progressing?" he added. "Better than expected. We're progressing fairly quickly, so we might be done with training faster than expected," he said. "Have you spotted anything weird about Ahsoka before you left?" he said after a short pause. "No. Why?" Cindo asked, becoming slightly worried. "She's acting weird. Anyway, I don't want to waste too much of your time. Good luck with your mission. Anakin out," he said before cutting the transmission.

 _The next morning…_

They caught up to Razy the night before and made camp deep in the jungle. Razy found the checkpoint the day before and scouted it out. He reported the same thing as Obi-Wan – four guards at each ray shield and three two-man patrols around the area. They woke up at the first sign of sunlight and prepared for their assault. They moved to the edge of the tree line and scouted the place one last time. Three B1's and a droideka were at the gate they could see. The other one was on the other side of the rock in which the main part of the checkpoint was carved into. There was a small balcony that went all around the rock with multiple B1's patrolling around on it. The main road spread out into two in a V shape with the rock in the middle. They moved as close as they could to the ray-shielded gate, while staying in the cover of the jungle.

"Glitch, how good is your shot?" Cindo asked. "Decent," Glitch whispered in response. They were quite close to the droideka, which was alone while the three other droids were on the other side of the gate, closer to the entrance of the main part of the checkpoint. "Can I trust you to take out the destroyer?" Cindo said. Glitch tilted his head for a second. "Sure," he said with a nod. "Good. Razy wait here with Glitch in case he screws up," he ordered. "And what are you gonna do?" Razy asked confusedly. "I am going to destroy those three droids after you shoot the destroyer," he explained.

"There's no way you're going to get to the other side fast enough to destroy them before they alert everyone," Razy questioned. "Don't worry. I have a trick up my sleeve. As soon as you see that I'm not here with you anymore wait five seconds and then destroy it. Okay?" Cindo said, looking through the shrubbery to see if any of the patrols were approaching. "Got it," Glitch said raising his weapon slowly. "And when are you going to…" Razy stopped talking once he turned his head and saw that Cindo wasn't there anymore. He nudged Glitch slightly, gaining his attention. His lifted his hand and began counting down with his fingers.

Once all of his fingers were closed into a fist Glitch shot the destroyer. At the same time, a lightsaber could be heard slicing through droids. They lifted their heads and saw Cindo standing in the middle of the tree now destroyed droids. Glitch and Razy quickly dragged the droideka into the jungle before running across the road. They hid the other droids behind a few rocks and waited for the patrols to do their rounds. All of them had the same route they just travelled separately to keep everything monitored. One by one the patrols passed them and they were all taken down. They were below the walkway up top when they were doing this, so they were completely hidden.

They then moved to the entrance. Two droids were guarding it. Cindo approached them slowly. "Hey. You aren't supposed to be here," the droid on the left exclaimed. They raised their blasters at him. "Sorry to bother you, but the droids at the gate aren't working," he said innocently. "Let's check it out," the droid on the left said, nudging the other droid with its rifle. "Roger, roger," the other one said and they began moving. When they passed Cindo he ignited his lightsaber and cut their heads off.

The three of them then moved on to the other gate and cleared it out in the opposite way. Razy and Glitch took care of the three B1's while Cindo used his force invisibility to get to the other side and take out the droideka. They then moved back to the entrance. "Glitch work your magic," Cindo said and Glitch immediately jumped towards the panel and took the front off, revealing the wires.

Cindo sensed the Force sending him warnings and placed his hand on the door. He could very faintly hear blaster fire. "Glitch get it open, quickly," he ordered. "Why? What's wrong?" Razy asked. "There's shooting going inside," he told him, and they ignited their lightsabers. The doors opened, and they jumped in, swinging wildly at the droids. The droids began slowly turning away from the original target once they realized that they were getting attacked from behind, but they were too late. All of the droids fell to the floor, either by being cut to pieces or shot dead-center in the head. Another droid attempted to run into the room they were in only to get shot in the head almost instantly.

"Wow," Glitch said, as the hole in the droid's head began smoking. They all had a good look at the man they just saved. It was a casually dressed man with brown hair and a mustache. In his hands was a blaster unlike any Cindo has seen before. "A pleasure meeting you gentlemen," he said with a slight bow. His free hand was cuffed, but his other uncuffed. "The pleasure is all ours," Cindo said, as Razy readied himself to attack the man. "Tobias Beckett, Galactic businessman. Who would the gentleman who cleared my way out be?" he said with his blaster lowered.

"Cleared your way out? Explain those cuffs and we'll talk about letting you out," Razy demanded. "These," he said dangling the cuffs around. "A slight miscommunication," he said. "Would you mind explaining?" Razy asked with a raised brow. "I was on my way to a meeting in Iziz when I was rudely interrupted by the droids at this checkpoint. I may have tried schmoozing my way through, but they took it as an act of aggression believe it or not," Tobias said.

"No, 'galactic businessman' would know how to use a blaster like that," Cindo analyzed. "Okay, let's not start throwing accusations around. I was only here to claim a certain item for my employer," he said, staying completely calm. "And who might your employer be?" Cindo asked. "That I cannot say. But, I can tell you who the man who stole the item is. It's the king himself," he said with a smile. "So, your intentions are aligned with ours. Damage the king's rule." Cindo pondered something for a second. "Okay, let's let him go," Cindo ordered. "Let him go? We can't just let him go. He'll probably backstab us," Razy said. "As proof that I will do no such thing," he said spinning the gun around masterfully in his hand and grabbing it by the barrel. "Take this," he said before he began removing his gun holster. "And this." Cindo moved in to take the items. "Sadly, I will not be able to complete my job, but I will make it up to my employer I assure you. Pleasure doing business with you," he said as he walked by them.

After Tobias left the checkpoint Razy turned towards Cindo. "Are you crazy! We just let a bounty hunter go!" he yelled. "You don't know that. He looked and sounded like a cool guy. And besides, he would've done more damage to the separatists than us anyway." Razy was about to say something, but he just sighed in defeat. "Come on. We have a job to finish," Cindo said, before moving deeper into the base. The hallways, rooms, and stairs were filled with droid wreckages. They came upon an elevator which lead straight to the control room.

A droid was standing in front of the elevator when it opened, probably waiting for it. "Hostiles!" it managed to yell before being shot by Glitch. Razy and Cindo ran into the room slicing droids which desperately reached for their blasters. Cindo jumped over a set of terminals and impaled the commander droid before it could sound the alarm. Glitch meanwhile took out the droids which were patrolling the outer walkway. "Clear here," Glitch said peeking through the window. "We're clear," Cindo declared and Glitch moved over to the main terminal. "Everything seems to be locked down," Glitch said, pressing a few buttons. "Can you get through the security?" Razy asked. "Shouldn't be a problem, but it might take a while."

"Take your time. I'm gonna contact Obi-Wan," Cindo said. He went outside to the walkway and quickly scanned the area. His comm began beeping. "That's convenient," he said quietly before opening the channel. "This is Cindo," he said. "Cindo it's Obi-Wan." Cindo could hear that he was somewhat out of breath and blaster fire could be heard. "The droids found the base. We were forced to retreat. Did you take that checkpoint?" he said. "Yes, we did. Glitch is currently slicing the gate controls," Cindo reported. "Good. We're going to be proceeding as planned. We'll be there in a few hours. Obi-Wan out," he said.

"What's up?" Razy asked from inside the base, standing next to Glitch. "The camp was attacked, but everything's proceeding as planned. You help Glitch out with anything he needs I'll stand watch."


	26. Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Hidden in Plain Sight (20 BBY)

It took a few hours for the rebels to arrive. They arrived at the checkpoint in a convoy of hovercarts dragged by dalgos, full of probably weapons and supplies. Cindo awaited them at the gate. "Took you long enough," Cindo remarked. Ahsoka, Steela and the shorter guy from the hologram jumped off the front cart, the rest of the rebels following.

Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Kyle approached him from the second cart in the convoy. "Most impressive. I presume there were no problems?" Obi-Wan asked. The Jedi were all wearing their cowls, the hoods covering their heads. "Not in the slightest. And we also have another surprise if you'll follow me," he said, before walking towards the entrance. Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, and Anakin followed him while the others waited at the convoy.

"Nice job," Ahsoka remarked as she moved away a few of the droids with her leg. "Most of these droids have been shot square in the head. Didn't know Glitch had such a good shot," Anakin said. They were about halfway to the control room. "That wasn't Glitch," Cindo said and the others stopped. "Then who was it?" Anakin asked with a raised brow.

Cindo stopped, turned around and pulled out the blaster he got from the man. "Tobias Beckett, galactic businessman, or at least that's what he said he was. Probably a mercenary or a bounty hunter or something." They eyed him with confused expressions. "Where is he?" Obi-Wan asked. "We let him go. But he left me this," Cindo said showing off the blaster. "Before you say anything, there was no proof that he was a criminal," he said. "But what was he doing here then?" Anakin said with his arms crossed across his chest. "He said it was a… misunderstanding," Cindo told them. "We don't really have time for this. You were taking us somewhere?" Obi-Wan said. "Yeah, come on," he said, beckoning for them to follow him.

They rode the elevator up to the control room where they met Glitch and Razy. "Masters," Razy said instantly after they stepped out of the elevator followed by a bow. "Hello Raz'yel," Obi-Wan said returning a small bow. "What have you and Glitch figured out?"

"Wow, I'm good!" Glitch yelled enthusiastically with a fist pump. "What did you find Sergeant?" Anakin asked as they moved closer towards him and Razy. "I cracked the last code. We have access to every single possible clearance code type. I can get us a code that will allow us to get into the city without any questions asked," he said proudly, wiping the sweat off his face before putting on his balaclava again. "Well done, Sergeant," Obi-Wan congratulated.

"Now all I need is a datapad onto which I can then transmit the code," Glitch said, facing the group. Anakin pulled out a datapad form under his cowl. "Here you go," he said handing it over to Glitch. "Thank you, sir," he said, turning around and connecting the datapad to the terminal. After a few seconds, he disconnected it. "Here you go," he said holding it out. Ahsoka took it as she was on the first cart. "Good job everybody. Let's go," Obi-Wan said. "I'll be right behind you. I have to turn off the ray shield first," Glitch said moving over to another console. They all went into the elevator and waited for him to join them before they attempted to leave the checkpoint.

When they got out into the scorching heat they got up on their carts and left for the city of Iziz. Cindo was on the first cart with Ahsoka, Steela and the man who he learned that his name was Lux. Lux was the son of a senator who got killed by Dooku's thugs. Cindo didn't talk as he noticed that all three of them seemed tense and nervous. They arrived at the bridge that led to the city.

The city gate was ray shielded. The bridge was littered with droids stopping civilians and checking documentation, there was also a tank on the far side of the bridge. They got stopped by two droids at the entrance. "Halt," the droid commanded and the convoy stopped. The other one began walking alongside the first cart. "What were you doing outside of the city gates?" the droid asked. "I think this will answer all your questions," Ahsoka said handing the datapad to the droid. "Priority supply transport." The droid stood there for a few seconds looking at the datapad.

He handed Ahsoka the datapad and disabled the ray shield with the gate controls which were in its other hand. "You may proceed," it said, and the convoy entered the city.

* * *

"That was easy," Ahsoka said once they were out of hearing range of the droids. "Thank you for the codes. I don't think we would've ever managed to get through the gates without them," Steela said. "You can't say that. The future is always in motion and there are thousands of different outcomes," Cindo said. "Did you just quote Master Yoda?" Ahsoka asked with a smile. "Maybe."

Immediately after the gate was the market which was sprawling with life. People were walking around the stands buying food and whatever else they needed or just chattering with each other as the sun slowly began to set. The cart stopped and Obi-Wan and Anakin pulled up beside it. "Not a bad start, but now the hard work begins," Anakin remarked. "You must find recruits and choose your targets wisely," Obi-Wan said.

"They'll be looking for us," Steela said. "We should split up," Lux suggested slowly standing up on the cart. "Regroup after nightfall. I'll alert our brothers," Saw who was hiding under the tarp on the cart said. He then walked off deeper into the city. Lux jumped off the cart and began walking off. "We'll make sure you get the supplies you need," Anakin guaranteed him and Lux nodded in response. "Rex and I will make sure of that," Ahsoka said. Lux turned back to the cart with Ahsoka, Steela, Cindo and now Rex and said, "Good luck." "You two," Ahsoka and Steela said at the same time, looking at each other with slightly frustrated expressions after. Steela and Lux left the area and Cindo was left coughing to mask his laughing.

After a few moments, Ahsoka took a deep breath and turned towards him. "You wanna join me and Rex?" she asked. "Yeah, sure."

* * *

After a day of ambushing patrols, clearing checkpoints and just killing droids, in general, the Jedi team and the rebels regrouped at the safehouse. It was an old abandoned house with no electricity, the only light being emitted from a hole in the ceiling and the door through which they entered. The supplies were stored further into the house, while the main meeting room was right next to the entrance.

The room had two circular cushioned benches. There were also random cushions on the ground and boxes where the other could sit while the others stood and watched the exchange. The Jedi sat down on one of the benches while Lux, Saw, and Steela sat down on the other. "Your success will not go unnoticed," Anakin said, cheers from the rebels following his statement. "I agree, but we need to be mindful of public perception," Obi-Wan warned. "What were your observations Padawans?"

"The population was struck with fear in every single mission," Kyle reported. "They're mistaking your intentions," Cindo began saying. He was leaning on the wall next to the door, the sunlight from the outside lighting up half of him while the other half was hidden by the darkness of the room. Everybody turned toward him and the room fell into silence. "You came in here and caused chaos without giving any reason as to why you're doing it. To you, it might seem obvious, but to the average person, it might seem like you're just normal thugs or gangsters doing it for fun. You need to send out a message about what you're trying to do," he added.

"We can send the message by destroying more droids," Saw said, punching his hand to empower his statement. "The people need to believe we can succeed. Without their support our efforts are meaningless," Steela said. "If they're afraid they won't support us. We need to assure them of our intentions," Lux added. "I just said that, but okay," Cindo said quietly.

"But I don't understand. Why are they afraid?" Saw asked eyeing both of them confusedly. "They're afraid we are not strong enough to win. We need to earn their trust," Steela answered. "You'll have plenty of time to earn their trust," Anakin assured them. All of you are going to be very busy," he added with a smile.

"Today was only a taste. You'll get your chance," Rex said. "In the meantime, make the most of your victories. Welcome, and learn from them." Lux who was thinking about something all this time lifted his head. "Perhaps if we hit something big. Give a show of strength. They will overcome their fear and join us." "Do you have something in mind?" Ahsoka said, looking at him with a curious expression. "I know the perfect target," he said confidently.

After discussing the target for a while the team decided that it was time to leave. "I think they're ready to give the 501st some competition," Anakin, walking behind Rex. "Let's not get carried away, General. Though, these rebels have impressed me," he said stopping and crossing his arms over his chest. "We will share the developments with the Jedi council. Cindo will remain here as an advisor," Obi-Wan said. "Master, can I stay as well?" Ahsoka asked Anakin and Obi-Wan. "Are you sure you're up for this, Snips?" Anakin asked. "Yes, Master," she said. "Good. We shall continue to provide supplies and credits, but they must learn to operate on their own. Their survival depends on it," Obi-Wan reminded them. "And don't forget to send reports," he added. "Remember your purpose," Anakin told Ahsoka, bowing to each other after.

"Good luck," Fisk said lightly slapping Cindo's back. "See you two on Coruscant," Cindo said. Fisk and Glitch then followed the rest of the Jedi. Cindo turned his head towards Ahsoka and saw that she was staring at the ground thoughtfully. "Why did you stay?" he asked her, and she didn't answer. "Okay… I'm gonna go back inside to see what they're planning. You coming?" he asked, pointing at the safehouse. "Yeah," she said dryly, letting out a sigh.

* * *

Later that day they went on a mission to scout their target, a power generator. They were hiding on a roof on the opposite side of the plaza where the generator was. Steela was getting a closer look with her sniper rifle while the others had to resort to just looking at it from a distance. "This power generator feeds substations across the city. We hit that the entire grid falls," Lux explained. "How does that help us?" Steela questioned. "Battledroids are no longer linked to central control. They operate individually." "Yes, but they still need power to recharge. If we take out this facility it will knock out the power grid and then it will only be a matter of time until the droid army is brought to a standstill, literally," Lux said.

"If you carry the plan out by nightfall you'll maximize your strike capability," Ahsoka advised. They had to keep the conversation quiet as to not draw any attention. Their scouting mission was even harder because the separatists decided to deploy a large number of probe droids, but luckily most of them only patrolled the streets. "Ok, so we just need to find a way to destroy the power station," Steela said. "Your main worry is probably that wall. We don't have access to any actual explosives and then even those wouldn't work. You'll need something powerful," Cindo analyzed.

"Agreed. But first, we need to do more surveillance," Lux said already looking for another place where they could get a better look. "Those droids should have all the intel we need stored up in those tin cans of theirs, right?" Saw asked after a brief pause. "Yeah, they do," Cindo answered, already assuming where this was going. "Then I'm going to get us one," Saw said. He slid down the roof and soon he was no longer in sight. Ahsoka stood up to follow him, but Cindo dragged her back down. "We can't fight for them, remember?" he said.

"I was only going to observe," she reassured him. "Yeah… no, you wouldn't," he said, grinning under his mask. "You know me too well," she said before turning her head back towards Lux and Steela. "So, when do you think he's coming back?" she asked. "Done," Saw said climbing back up to the roof with a droid head in his hands.

They hooked up the head to a portable holo-device. A hologram of the complex appeared. "Too many guards to sneak in undetected and also too many to fight head on," Cindo said, analyzing the hologram and pointing at certain locations where the guards were located. "As you said we'll need something big to blow it up," Steela said, agreeing with his idea from earlier.

"If we give them enough trouble, they will call for reinforcements," Lux said. Although it was a far cry from his life before his mother was murdered he was adapting quickly. "Like a tank?" Steela asked with a raised brow. "Exactly. Then you can provide cover while we hijack it," Lux answered with a nod, his hands placed on his hips. "And then we use their own weapon against them," Steela added. "And bring to droid army to its knees," Saw concluded.

* * *

They prepared the ambush. Cindo was sent to the rooftops to get a good view of the surrounding area. His job was to report any incoming reinforcements. Lux, Saw, and Steela were joined by Ahsoka down at the street level. Another rebel came to the scene with a speeder and left it in the middle of the road. She hid in the alleyway on the opposite side of the road to where they were.

"There's a patrol of about ten B1s and ten B2s approaching your position," Cindo reported. The droids were slowly approaching the parked speeder in a formation. One of the B2s began pushing it away while the others walked around it. When they close to the speeder the rebel who drove it there activated the EMP mines hidden inside, knocking half of the droids out.

The rebels then walked out and used their blasters and droid poppers to destroy the other droids. They had to expose themselves to do so though, causing the death of a few rebels, but in the end, they managed to destroy the droids. Cindo could hear a familiar sound from down the road. "Destroyers incoming," he said into his wrist comm. A second later he heard Ahsoka yell. "Destroyers incoming!" The rebels retreated to positions with cover while Ahsoka protected them by deflecting the destroyer's bolts with her lightsabers.

Lux and Saw flanked the droids. Saw managed to roll a droid popper through one of their shields. Lux, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. He threw the popper with too much power, making it bounce away from the shield. The droid noticed them and turned around to shoot them. Saw pushed Lux back into the alley from which they came from and he himself took cover behind the disabled destroyer. Luckily for them Steela reacted fast enough and ran towards the droid, sliding across the pavement and placing the popper within its shield.

The droid shifted into its deactivated state and the rebels took a moment to catch their breath. "The tank's approaching your position fast," Cindo reported, watching the tank alongside four B2s roll around the corner. The B2s began firing blasters and rockets wildly, while Steela took the two in front out with her sniper rifle. Lux and Saw moved to the tank. They climbed the tank, each of them throwing a droid popper into one hatch. The tank was disabled, but two B2s which were behind the tank surprised them. Lux and Saw quickly found some cover while Steela took out the droids.

Seeing that the first objective was successfully completed Cindo moved on to his next position. It was the same rooftop that they used to scout the power generator. A silent minute passed. "Cindo do you see anything?" Ahsoka asked over the comm. "No. The whole plaza seems clear. There are a few guards at the gate though," Cindo said, looking at the complex with his macrobinoculars.

The tank began sluggishly moving up towards the entrance. Steela and Ahsoka jumped off the tank and proceeded towards the statue of a man riding a dalgo in the middle of the square. Ahsoka boosted Steela up, so she could get a better look.

Steela began firing as the tank kept on approaching the main gate. A flurry of bolts rained back into her direction, but all of them missed since she had good cover. Cindo began nervously tapping his blaster, ready to jump down and help them out if needed. A patrol of six droids moved toward Ahsoka and Steela from their left, but Ahsoka managed to react quickly enough, igniting one of her lightsabers to block the incoming blaster bolts, while Steela destroyed them with her blaster pistol.

The droids expectedly ignored the tank, thinking it was theirs until it began running them over at which point it was too late for them to do anything. Steela moved up to the tank as it began shooting at the gate.

When they blew up the second gate a squad of commando droids was waiting on the other side. They began running at them while Steela desperately tried to shoot them down. But it was to no avail as the droids began jumping around wildly, causing her to miss shots. Cindo in the meantime jumped down from the roof and joined Ahsoka at the statue.

They observed the encounter without uttering a word. A few of the commando droid got close to the tank. All except one were taken out before they got close. The last one jumped onto the tank and knocked Lux down on his back, but not before Lux managed to disarm it by shooting it in the hand. The droid's attention turned to Steela as she pulled out her blaster pistol. The droid kicked her hand away before she managed to fire. But in turn, Lux had enough time to pick up his blaster and shoot the droid in the head.

The main gun of the tank recharged and Saw fired it directly at the center of the power generator. It caused a giant explosion, followed by waves of electrical shockwaves. Ahsoka was forced to hide behind the statue and cover her montrals as they were way more sensitive than human ears. After the electrical shockwave ended she stood up and joined Cindo as he watched the rebels run away from the scene.

"Whatever you did with them worked," Cindo said, marveling at the destruction. "Looks like it," she said as she stood next to him.

* * *

Later that night cheers could be heard throughout the city as the rebels continued to push back the separatists oppressors. After hours of observing them at work, they finally returned to the safe house early in the morning.

When they were walking down the alley towards the safe house Cindo couldn't shake the feeling that they were being followed. "Are you going to help me deliver my report?" Ahsoka asked him. He had his head turned to the alleyway the just came from. "I'll be right there," he said, before moving back the way he came from. "Is something wrong?" she asked, her head peeking from behind the corner. "No, everything's fine. I'm just going to take a walk," he said waving his hand dismissively. "Suit yourself," she retorted, before disappearing.

Cindo carefully checked the alley step by step. He thought he sensed somebody in one of the entrances, which was built in a way where somebody could hide behind the corner. Cindo pulled out his new blaster. He jumped around the corner, but there was nothing there. Then all of the sudden somebody dropped from above and knocked the blaster out of his hand. Cindo reacted quickly swiped him off his feet. He pulled out his dagger and brought it to the person's neck only then noticing that the person was the man he met at the outpost. "Beckett? What are you doing here?" he asked, pulling the saber away from his neck and helping him on his feet.

"I wanted to thank you," he said, wiping the dust off his clothes. "For the thing at the outpost?" Cindo asked confusedly. "No, for that we're even," he said, picking up the two blasters on the ground and handing one of them to Cindo. "I wanted to thank you and your friends for creating enough chaos so that I could do my retrieval job," he said, holstering his blaster but not before of course performing a few tricks with it. "Didn't you say you couldn't do it?"

"Well, that was before I went back at the outpost and got myself a clearance code after you left," he explained. Got to the city and began doing surveillance, but during my surveillance, I noticed the rebel attacks. So, I said to myself why not wait until they do something big? And hitting the power station created enough chaos for me to sneak into the palace and get what I needed," he added. "And you came all the way just to thank me?" Cindo said, crossing his arms.

"No, I came here to repay my debt. Without you letting me go, letting me get the codes and the chaos I would have never been able to do this. So, now I'll give you something in return. It isn't much but it will be helpful," Beckett said. "Let's hear it," Cindo said with a gesture. "While I was in the palace I overheard a conversation between the kind and Count Dooku. They're bringing in reinforcements and a lot of them from what I heard. They are also bringing in a general name Kalani and some new prototype weaponry," Beckett reported. "Did you hear where these reinforcements would be delivered to?" Cindo said. "They didn't say anything else," he concluded.

"Thanks for the heads up," Cindo said with a nod. "No problem," Beckett said, giving him a two-fingered salute before disappearing into the darkness of the Onderonian streets.

* * *

 _I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I don't really like directly copying what happens in the animated series or movies, so I try to change it up by adding a new scene that I find interesting or just adding dialogue and changing how situations play out, just to give something fresh to the people that may have already seen the episodes._


	27. Chapter 26

Chapter 26: For Freedom (20 BBY)

Palpatine was sitting at his desk after an exhausting day of listening to debates that would as always either lead nowhere or create even bigger rifts in the senate. It was exhausting and boring to listen to, but he endured, knowing that his plan was still in motion and his true identity a secret. Soon the Jedi would be killed by the clones they fought side to side with for years, and they wouldn't see it coming.

During the years of him being chancellor he hadn't had many close calls or even large complications that could've ruined his plan. There was the occasional clue, but those were wiped from existence as fast they could. Everything seemed to have gone well and nothing bothered him until now.

Something in one of the recent Jedi mission reports bothered him to the point where he was beginning to lose his composure. The Jedi were hiding something – someone from him. When he first looked at the report it had all the names written out, except for one. Not even with his clearance was he able to see the full report. So, he worked his connections and got somebody to declassify the rest of the report for him.

He turned around in his chair and looked out the window into the vastness of Coruscant. The city never failed to amaze him even as a Sith and he drooled at the thought of one day controlling all of it, if all proceeded as planned of course.

A light on his table began lighting up in even intervals. He swung the chair around and pressed the button next to the light. A hologram of the report appeared, fully declassified. He went to the document slowly until he came upon the newly declassified name. "Cindo," he growled in annoyance, looking at the name with narrow eyes. He shot up and walked to the next room as quickly as possible. He closed the shutters and put on his cowl.

After a few minutes his contact in the Jedi temple picked up the call and appeared in front of him as a hologram. "My lord," the person said with a respectful bow. "To what do I owe the honor?"

"Do you have access to the archives?" Palpatine asked immediately. "Not directly no. But I should be able to get in there if you give me enough time, my lord." "Take as much time as you need," Palpatine growled in mild annoyance. He wanted the information now, but he understood that some things were just impossible to get the second you wanted them. "And what would you like me to find?" the person asked. "I want you to get me all of the information you can about someone called Cindo."

* * *

Cindo was sitting in the storage room where he usually spent his nights if there wasn't any rebel activity to observe. He was lying on the boxes his back supported by a higher stack of boxes, dragging his fingers across his dagger. The moonlight was pouring through the holes in the roof, slightly illuminating the room. He could hear the rebels celebrating their success in the other room.

He went back there straight after the conversation with Beckett. He decided not to report what Beckett told him in case he would've ruined the celebrations. The info could wait until the next day.

He could sense Ahsoka approaching the storage room. He could also sense that her emotions were changing every second, probably another moment of jealousy happened that he didn't see. She entered the room and sat down on a box that was beside the door, her hands supporting her face and one of her legs bouncing up and down. "You're in emotional shock," Cindo said, turning his head towards her. "I'm fine," she assured him.

"It's about Lux isn't it?" he asked, and her expression changed from an emotionless one to a slightly sad one. "You like him, don't you?" he said. "What is it to you?" she said her head shooting up and her eyes peering at him angrily. "Nothing. I was just asking. It's for you to decide what you want to do with your feelings," he said, facing the wall.

"That's the thing, I don't know what to do," she said, calming down. "First love?" he asked directly. "Yes… Well sort of," she said, scratching the lek on the back of her head. "Sort of?"

"When I was younger, so it was more of a crush than anything," she said, turning her head slightly away from him. "Uh huh. So, have you talked to him about it?" he asked her. "No," she said, her face dropping. "Anakin told me that he understood, but that I should put purpose before emotion," she explained. "A wise statement. But soon is going to be the time to make your own decision. Let Lux and Steela be with each other, or you swooping in and grabbing the kill," he told her, making her frown in thought. "I need time for this, but the more I think the more I see it not working out and also they seem like they're perfect for each other," she said.

"If you want my advice on making a decision, I would say meditate on it. You will make a decision easier if you do it with a clear head," he advised. "I will try," she responded. He was slightly surprised by how she immediately said yes as she was more of a person that sought constant action and she was never really a fan of meditation. "You never told me how you got that?" she added. He lifted up his dagger. "This?" he asked, and she nodded in response. "Do you remember me telling you how I got the scar?" he said. "Yes, you got it by fighting one of those lizard things, except that one was way bigger," she remembered. "Correct. This here is one of its teeth. You can only become a Warden by obtaining one of these. And it's somewhat similar to how crystals work with the Force," he explained.

"So, you feel that you're connected with it?" she said intriguingly. "Well yes. But your crystal radiates with the light side, this dagger is a balance of both," he answered. "How does the Force flow through a large tooth?"

"It doesn't by itself. It's some secret Warden thing I can't tell you about," he said, followed by a pause in which they simply looked at each other. "You should get some rest," Cindo recommended. "Can't. I have some meditating to do," she said before leaving the room.

* * *

After delivering his intel that Beckett provided in the morning Cindo stayed and listened to the plan for the next rebel operation. Their plan was to ambush the incoming reinforcements while they were being delivered.

"Steela," one of the rebel scouts who just ran into the room said out of breath. As the elected leader of the rebels, every bit of info was reported to her. "What is it?" she asked in distress. "They're executing the king for treason," she reported. "What? When?" Steela said, her eyes. All of the chatter that was going on in the room abruptly disappeared. "Today. He's being executed for treason. They think he's helping us."

"This definitely changes things," Lux commented with a thoughtful look. He was on the couch to the right of Steela. "For the better. We have a chance at saving the king," Saw said enthusiastically. "Where's the execution happening?" Steela asked the scout. "Outside the front entrance of the palace, at the main plaza," the scout reported. "At what time?" "Noon."

"The reinforcements are supposed to arrive in an hour or so, so we can still go through with the original plan, but we'll have to make a new plan fast." It was currently very early in the morning and the sun hasn't even properly risen, so they still had time to formulate a plan. The new prototype weapon the separatists were supposed to be delivering and the unnamed general really put them in a bad position.

"You know they won't survive this without our help. Has the council said anything?" Cindo asked Ahsoka when they were the only ones left in the room. "They won't let us intervene," she said sadly. They both adopted thoughtful expression, trying to come up with something useful. "The new prototype weapon," Ahsoka began. "What did your contact say it was?" "He didn't mention the type," Cindo said. "But a good slicer could figure something out," he added. "And where are we supposed to start?" Ahsoka asked. "Well as we did before we can get a droid head," he stated. "I don't think any normal droid would have information about that," she questioned. "No, but either a tactical or a commander droid could have some references to it." He jumped up from the box he was sitting on during the meeting. "I'm going to tell our friends to get us another head."

It didn't take long until a droid commander head was delivered into Cindo's hand. Him and Ahsoka went to the storage room again because the meeting room was currently being used. Ahsoka set up the holo-device and soon a hologram of Obi-Wan and Anakin appeared in front of them. "Masters," Ahsoka said with a bow. "Ahsoka, Cindo, what is it? You seem distressed," Obi-Wan analyzed. "Master there has been a slight complication. The droids are bringing in a new prototype weapon," Ahsoka reported standing to the left of Cindo with her hands behind her back.

"That is most alarming," Obi-Wan said. "But we have no reports of any new separatist weapons being used," he added. "Yes, that's why we extracted the data from this," Cindo said, putting the droid head into view. "Try to get the files to Glitch or anybody else who can crack them and try to get back to us with any info you find about a prototype weapon," Cindo said. "We will get back to you as soon as we can. Good luck," Anakin said before the transmission was cut off. Ahsoka let out a deep sigh and attempted to exit the room. "Have you made your choice yet?" Cindo asked and she froze. "Yes, I did," she said determinedly, before walking off. Cindo could sense that whatever choice she made she was sure that it was the right thing to do.

* * *

They were running out of time. The rebel's attack on the reinforcements went well, but they still didn't know anything about the weapon. It was beginning to worry even the rebels themselves, who were in their last meeting before their biggest mission ever. "I don't think we can do this," one of the rebels in the back of the room said. "They'll tear us apart," another one added. More and more negative comments could be heard echoing through the room.

Saw stood up. "Everybody calm down!" he yelled. Then Steela followed in his footsteps and stood up next to him. "This is what we've been fighting for and we will not back down," she said, confidently gaining the support of a few rebels in the crowd.

Cindo was taken away from the action by Ahsoka nudging him. They went outside the room into the corridor and Ahsoka pulled out her holo-communicator. "We have the info you want. The new weapon is an attack gunship, it can carry a few troops but its main thing is to deal as much damage as possible," Anakin reported. Ahsoka and Cindo looked at each other with concerned expressions. "Anything else?" Cindo asked, looking back at the hologram of Anakin. "Sadly no," he said with a shake of his head.

"We don't have anything that can take those out. Can you help us somehow?" Ahsoka said. "Supplying the weapons required would take time. Time the rebels don't have," Anakin said. "But how else are we supposed to get the weapons?" Ahsoka asked. "I may know how, but I will need credits, now," Cindo said.

* * *

Half an hour later Cindo found himself in a cantina close to the city gates. He found the man he was looking for sitting behind the bar. He sat down next to him. "Beckett," he greeted and the man looked at him in well but not well enough hidden surprise. "Oh, it's you. I thought we were even," he said drinking his shot and ordering another.

"We are. This is a business venture," he said, making Beckett nod with an amused expression. "Ah, I see. Come let's move somewhere more private," he said, putting his arm on Cindo's back and walking beside him. They sat down behind a table at the empty of the cantina. "And this deal is connected with the rebels I presume?" he asked, already knowing the answer. "Yes. The prototype weapon you heard about is an attack gunship. We need something to take it or them out," Cindo explained. "Rocket launchers should do the trick," he said. "But those are expensive and I don't know if you have that kind of…" he said, being interrupted by Cindo putting a case full of credits on the table. "Oh. That will work." He pondered for a few moments. "Express delivery?" he asked. "As fast as possible," Cindo said.

"I know a guy on the other side of Onderon. Black market arms dealer. He's bound to have some of those. I make the call and he'll deliver them within the hour," Beckett concluded. Cindo needed them delivered faster seeing as the time they would be delivered would be just as the execution started, but he had no other choice. He pushed the case towards him. "Pleasure doing business," Beckett said extending his arm. Cindo took it and they shook hands. "Likewise."

* * *

Everything was set. The rebels were in position and awaiting the time to attack. Some of them were hidden on the rooftops and the others within the populace. The whole plaza was full of people who came to see the execution. Most of the people there didn't support it, but they didn't have a choice, attendance was mandatory.

There were two magnaguards waiting on top of the first set of stairs which was being protected by a line of droids, with a small U-shaped device between them. King Rash proudly stepped out of the palace, followed by the cuffed former king Dendup, who was being dragged along by two more magna guards, and behind them was a man cladded in black armor and a helmet. On his belt was a lightsaber.

"Did your contact mention a Sith?" Ahsoka said quietly to Cindo. They were hiding in the crowd ready to jump in if things went badly, and oh did they seem to look bad at the moment. "No, he didn't," Cindo answered. "And when are the launchers coming?" "They should be here within a few minutes. I sent two of the rebels to bring them and distribute them between the rooftop teams," Cindo said. He could sense Ahsoka's concern. He turned towards her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry they'll succeed with our help," Cindo reassured her. "But we aren't supposed to intervene," she reminded him. "Does it look like any of these people have what it takes to kill a Sith?" She only managed to give him a deadpan look. "Come on, let's get closer in case they'll need us," he said. Making his way through the crowd he sensed the other rebel's emotions. They were scared. Nobody was expecting a Sith.

Dendup was brought to his knees before the device. Rash dropped in a fruit to demonstrate how the device works. One of the magnaguards hit the device with their electrical staff, sending a current through the device, engaging a ray shield that cut the fruit in half. Some people in the audience audibly gasped. "We have gathered here today to witness the execution of your former king and traitor Ramsis Dendup," he said and the crowd was quiet. "He has committed acts of treason against our beloved world and for that he shall be punished," he said with a raised fist.

One of the magnaguards forced the kings head into the device and waited for the signal. Rash lifted his hand and the droid activated its staff in response. Unbeknownst to them that was also the signal for the rebels to begin their attack.

The magnaguard who was about to execute Dendup was shot first followed, by the swift destruction of two more. The last one survived because the Sith was able to pull out his lightsaber and deflect the bolts from the king, the droid being right in front of the king.

The rebels without long range rifles focused down the line of droids on the bottom of the stairs. Smoke grenades were thrown in and five rebels ran into the smoke attempting to rescue the king. The people in the crowd either began to run away or retreat to the back of the plaza. The rebels managed to get the king out but not before three of the were pulled back into the smoke, cries of pain following after.

Droids began pouring out of the palace and gunships could be heard approaching. Soon the dropships were in sight. They were in the shape of a disk with a droid brain that resembled a face mounted in the front. There were four of them, two landing on each of the rooftops where the rebels were, unloading their troops. They lifted off and began shooting at the rebels on the roof. They unleashed a flurry of bolts and rockets, killing many of them.

A speeder could be heard approaching. It was the two rebels who were sent to pick up the launchers. They distributed them to the rebels on the ground as fast as they could before joining the battle. Cindo and Ahsoka moved further back to where some of the people who were brave enough to watch were hiding.

Chunks of buildings were flying off from the gunships' rocket pods. The two gunships that were focused on the right rooftops of the plaza were inching towards the plaza area, giving the rebels the chance to shoot them down. Saw took one down successfully, and watched it spin out of control and hit the palace. The other one was taken out easily as well.

The right rooftops were clear, so the remaining rebel fighters descended down to street level and helped with the fighting in the plaza. The two rebels who weren't killed by the Sith managed to escort Dendup to the center of the square, where temporary cover consisting of speeders and market stands was. The left rooftops didn't have the same amount of good will. They were forced to retreat down to the plaza and the two gunships moved there and began firing at them. One by one they were getting killed by the flurry of blaster cannons and rocket pods that were destroying their positions.

Saw was joined by Lux and Steela who retreated from the rooftops. Another rebel was about to shoot his rocket launcher, but he got killed by the numerous amounts of blaster bolts that were being produced from the droids that were slowly moving up the plaza. Saw picked up his fallen comrade's launcher and took down another gunship with it. The rebels were retreating further and further back into the middle of the plaza. The droids stopped advancing when they were close and the gunship began hovering above them.

A commando droid made its way through the crowd of droids and threw a holo-device on the ground, a hologram of king Rash appearing after. "A valiant attempt I will say terrorists but you have failed. Surrender yourselves and the king and you can live the rest of your lives in prison, resist and be killed," he stated, standing proudly with his hands behind his back before the hologram disappeared. The droids readied their weapons.

"We have to do something," Ahsoka said, ready to jump into action. "Wait. Can you hear that?" Cindo asked. "Hear what?" The rocks on the ground began to shake slightly as stomping could be heard in the background. After a moment a large group of men dressed in ornate gray armor and wielding laser lances swept the plaza, riding dalgos. The droids immediately turned around and focused their attention on the dalgos and their riders.

That gave the rebels the opportunity to start firing again. Large amounts of droids fell every second, either by being shot or stomped. The Sith, who disappeared probably to protect the king, appeared again, slowly moving down the stairs of the palace. He was casually walking through the battlefield, slaughtering everyone in his path.

The Sith was the last man left standing. Everybody that tried to stop him died. The rest of the dalgos riders, who Cindo figured out were the Onderonian militia, fell back to the middle of the square where the rest of the rebels were.

Cindo could sense the anger seeping off him. "Can we help now?" Ahsoka asked with a concerned expressions. "Let's go," Cindo said with a nod and they ran out from behind the market stall towards the middle of the plaza. They jumped over the speeders the rebels were hiding behind and ignited their lightsabers.

"Jedi. I should've known," the Sith said. "Surrender," Ahsoka demanded, pointing one of her lightsabers at him. The Sith began crazily laughing. "Surrender to you? A little Padawan girl and her boyfriend?" he said.

Ahsoka's face turned into one of anger. She ran at him with a cry and swung her lightsabers. "A Jedi, yet so full of darkness," the Sith said, as they kept blocking each other's swings. They got into a blade lock. The Sith was proving to be too powerful for her, so Cindo ran at him and kicked him in the knee from the side, making him growl in pain and turn his attention to him.

The Sith swung his crimson blade at him with as much power as he could, almost going through Cindo's block. The Sith was even taller and stronger than Cindo, so he had to employ another tactic. Cindo put his two blades into one double-bladed saber. He retreated a few steps. Ahsoka tried to attack the Sith from behind only to be met with his foot, making her fly through the air and roll a few times when she landed.

The Sith turned around again and ran at Cindo. Cindo sidestepped as the Sith swung and tripped him. The Sith immediately picked himself up and let out a scream of anger. He grabbed Cindo in a force choke. Because of his full attention being on Cindo, he didn't see Ahsoka sneak up on him and kick him in the same knee as Cindo did in the beginning. It bent in a weird way and the Sith released Cindo and let out a cry of pain.

He then began focusing on Ahsoka. They were exchanging swings, Ahsoka being forced back by the sheer power of his strikes. She jumped over him, using the Force to increase the height of the jump and landed behind him. The Sith reacting quickly turned around and pushed her away with the Force. Cindo, who just recovered from the choke joined the fight. The Sith was then forced to fight both of them at once. He put up a valiant fight, but the two proved to be too fast for him. Cindo managed to swing at his weakened leg when he was blocking Ahsoka's swing, cutting it off.

He tumbled to the ground, his lightsaber rolling away from his hand. He still didn't want to give up. He began crawling his way towards the saber, only to be stopped by Ahsoka stepping onto one of his hands. The Sith stopped, turned onto his back and began to chuckle. "Now what?" he asked as Ahsoka pointed a lightsaber at his face. "You won't do it, you're a Jedi. You would never kill and unarme…" The Sith's sentence was cut off by immense pain. He looked away from Ahsoka and down towards his midsection where a lightsaber was protruding into him. He looked up and met the masked man's face. "You have failed your teachings Jedi," he said, finding delight in his death. "I'm no Jedi," Cindo said, putting even more force on the saber, making the Sith cry out in pain. The life began to fade from his body and soon he was lying there, lifeless.

Cheers could be heard as a large crowd started to pour back into the plaza. They haven't seen Cindo and Ahsoka yet, so they decided to quickly run away from the scene.

* * *

The next day they met with the remainder of the rebels in the safehouse. "On the behalf of Onderon, I thank you and the Republic for your service," Dendup the rightful king of Onderon said. "I understand that your work here has to stay a secret we still want to present you with an award for helping our people."

One of the militia soldiers brought forth a small wooden box with two medals on the inside. "Take these as a reminder of what you've achieved here," he said. "What about the rebels?" Cindo asked. "They will receive theirs at today ceremony. We will also pay respects for the ones who lost their lives for the good of Onderon," the king assured them.

"Now I must get back to the preparations. All the best to you." "Thank you, your highness," Ahsoka said respectfully. She and Cindo bowed to the king, before he and his guards left the safehouse. Steela and the rest of the rebels approached them. "We too would like to thank you for everything you've done. We hope to see you her once we've rebuilt. Goodbye for now," Steela told them. She and the rest of the rebels except for Lux left the building as well.

He approached Ahsoka. "So, what are you going to do now?" Ahsoka asked him. Cindo noticed that she seemed calmer talking to him. "I've been assigned as the new senator of Onderon. After watching the heroics and selflessness of the Jedi, I will try realigning Onderon with the Republic," he told her. "What about you and Steela?" she asked. "I umm… Well umm…" He didn't find the words he wanted. "You two are made for each other," she said. He looked at her with a confused expression. "I thought you…" he began saying before being interrupted. "Get out of here before I change my mind," she said with a smile. He nodded and ran off.

"It must be hard for you," Cindo said. "Let's just forget this, okay?" "As you wish."

* * *

 _This is the end of the Onderon arc. Hope you enjoyed it. I combined the last two episodes into one chapter and drastic changes that hopefully makes sense._


	28. Chapter 27

Chapter 27: Dark Times Ahead (20 BBY – 19 BBY)

As soon as he and Ahsoka stepped out of the ship in the hangar of the Jedi temple Cindo stopped her. He left her alone for most of the trip, sensing her emotional turmoil. She made a choice she was going to stick by, but it didn't mean that it didn't hurt. If any of the Jedi Masters were there she would get scolded and lessoned on how emotions and attachments only lead to the dark side, although Cindo was living proof that it didn't. The only Jedi Master that would probably not show some sort of displeasure was Obi-Wan. Even though he was seen as a perfect Jedi to many it didn't mean that he would force other people to be the same as him. He would understand that a mere child, especially someone Ahsoka's age, wouldn't be able to contain all their emotions.

"You alright?" Cindo asked her, as he was following her down the ramp of the ship. "Yes, I'm fine," she assured him with a slightly annoyed look. "I made my decision, but it doesn't mean that I'm happy about it," she added. "All wounds take time to heal, no matter how small. Give it time. You'll get through it," Cindo said, placing an arm on her shoulder. "Hopefully," she deadpanned with a sigh. "I'll see you around," she continued. Cindo nodded and she walked off with her head slightly lowered.

"What's gotten into her?" Razy asked as he was approaching Cindo. He was in the seeing off Obi-Wan, Kyle and Jedi Master Adi Gallia. They were going on a mission to hunt down Darth Maul and his brother Savage Opress. It seemed like Maul had a personal vendetta against Obi-Wan for cutting him in half. "She made a tough decision on the assignment. It might take a few days for her to return to normal," he told Razy as he was looking at Ahsoka, who was still on her way to the door of the hangar. "Was it about that Lux guy?" he asked and Cindo looked at him in surprise. "How do you know about that?" he asked intriguingly. "From what Ahsoka told me him and her fought some Mandalorians and kissed. Or was it the other way around?" he said, pondering which one was correct.

"Anyway, I'm glad she's over him. You never know with these sleezy senator types. They can be quite manipulative and unpredictable. My cousin taught me that," he said. "You still have contact with your family?" Cindo asked. "No, not really. I was taught to not form attachments, and family is a big one. But I do talk to my cousin from time to time. Senator Chuchi, you heard of her?" Cindo shook his head. "So anyway, how's training going?" he asked.

"Great," Razy answered with a roll of his eyes. "I don't get to do anything besides study and practice. I have been on three missions. Two with you and one on Ryloth, which I had to beg for him to let me go with him," he said. "Hey, I practiced for five years straight," Cindo reminded him. "Did you read books and swing at air the entire time?" Razy asked, frowning. "Don't worry. You'll get more chances soon. I'm sure of it," Cindo reassured him. "Well, thanks for the support at least," he said, walking away after.

* * *

"Did you miss me?" Cindo asked, his mask finally off and his arms outstretched as he was approaching HK. "No," HK said simply, turning towards him. "Not even a bit?" "Maybe a bit. The exchanges with the other meatbags are never as entertaining as ours," it said. "Any visitors?" Cindo asked HK. "Nope. Everything was quiet for the many days that you were gone," HK replied. Cindo went into the room to drop off all the extra equipment before going outside again.

"Sorry to leave so soon, but I need to go see somebody," he said as he was walking down the corridor. "Enjoy your time," HK said, inclining its head.

* * *

His next stop was Naomi's apartment. He walked the plain gray hallways one again to get to the door. He could sense that she was inside, but she wasn't answering the door, so he decided to unlock it himself. He stepped through the door frame carefully.

He spotted Naomi sleeping in the bed. He hadn't slept for two days, so he decided that it would be best if he went to the fresher and washed his face with cold water. He then took a seat and waited for her to wake up. Luckily it didn't take long for that to happen. She turned around to face him and opened her eyes. "You know you could've just woken me up," she said, pulling herself upwards. "As it seems there was no need for that anyway," he said.

She pulled herself upward and moved to the table. She poured herself a mug of caf from the caf dispenser. It appeared to be new. "You want some?" she asked him with an empty mug in her other hand. "No, thanks," he said.

"So, how did the mission go?" she asked, pulling another chair close to him and sitting down. He took off his helmet, which he put on during the walk to the building and put it on the table. "It went well. We managed to help the rebels retake Onderon, and I also got to fight another Sith," he said. He then noticed that she was looking at him with a thoughtful expression. "I just realized something," she began. "What?" he asked. "I've never actually properly seen your face before. You always wear that mask," she told him. She was right.

"It's one of the signs of a Warden," he explained. "Is that scar real?" she asked, before slowly running a hand down it. It sent a weird feeling through Cindo. He felt the same feeling whenever they touched or whenever she struck one of her show-off poses, but he couldn't identify what he was feeling.

"Yes, it is," he said, before quickly getting up. He was trying to shield his emotions from her as best as he could. He didn't even know what he was feeling, so he didn't even know what he was attempting to shield. "So, how far did you get with the books?" he asked her, moving over to the datapad that was sitting on the bed. He sat down and took it. "I went through all of them." Cindo kept on checking the datapad silently for a minute. "I was wondering about something?" she asked him.

"What?" he asked, looking down at the datapad and making sure that the contents haven't been copied. Those Jedi books sold for a very high price on the market. "When do I get to make my lightsaber?" she asked. "When you get your crystal," he answered. "I already have one," she said, and his head shot up at her. "Where?"

She stood up, walked over to him and sat down beside him. She pulled the dark red crystal from her pocket. "The crystal from my old lightsaber," she explained, handing him the crystal. "How did you get that?" Cindo asked. "Before they took me to the Citadel, I managed to pull it out of my lightsaber and hide it in my old clothes," she explained.

"Yes, but did you find this crystal yourself or was it given to you by the Sith?" Cindo said. "It was given to me by them, but I know it's mine," she said seriously. "How can you be so sure?" he asked her.

"I could, and I still do sense the darkness in the crystal. But ever since the first time I meditated I sensed that there was something deeper within, something hidden under the dark shell of hatred. Something was calling me. I can still hear it now," she said. "Then this one truly is yours," Cindo said in amazement. The chance of her crystal being given to her by the Sith was next to none, but then again what if it was destined for her to find her crystal this way. "But before you can use it you must wash it clean of the darkness that consumes it," he said. She leaned over to him and took the crystal from his hand. "I already know how," she said, sitting down on the ground in a meditative position with her hands tightly holding the crystal.

She closed her eyes and opened herself up to the light side of the force, letting it flow through her and cleanse the crystal. A bright yellow light began shining through the gaps in between her fingers. The light soon disappeared, and she stood up and slowly removed the hand that was covering the crystal. A soft purple glow was emitting from the crystal. "You really are learning fast," he commented. She looked up at him with the proudest smile he had ever seen. It made his stomach turn, but not in a way which meant disgust. Again, this weird feeling overcame him. " _Why is this happening?"_ he thought.

As he figured out he was experiencing these things before and they were easy to conceal then, but over time these feelings became stronger and stronger. "Now you just need to find the parts that will work," he managed to say, snapping out of his thoughts. "Sense them. They will call to you as the crystal did," he instructed.

* * *

 _Three days later…_

After days of following the footsteps of the Sith brothers, they finally found them on the planet of Florrum. Having bribed a large part of Hondo Ohnaka's pirates they began their assault on the rest of his forces who remained loyal to their captain. Maul and Savage joined them to end this encounter with the least amount of losses possible, but the three Jedi forced them to change their priorities. A lightsaber battle ensued in which Jedi Master Gallia was brutally killed by Savage. Obi-Wan and his Padawan, Kyle retreated into the pirate stronghold with Hondo and the rest of his men.

Hondo prepared an ambush while the Jedi led the two Sith away to fight them separately. Another lightsaber battle happened. For the longest time, they were exchanging swings and kicks until Obi-Wan managed to outwit Savage and cut off his arm. Savage in a fit of pain and pure rage charged at Obi-Wan. The Jedi Master managed to move away from the attack last second but unbeknownst to him his Padawan was kicked by Maul right into the path of Savage's charge.

Kyle was knocked to the ground before being mercilessly impaled by Maul's saber. Obi-Wan for the first time in his life felt his composure disappearing and anger, fear, and sadness replacing it. He managed to gain whatever strength was left in him to repel their attacks with his and Gallia's saber. When all hope seemed lost the pirates, which Hondo managed to reunite to Obi-Wan's bewilderment stormed out of the stronghold and attacked the Sith, who were forced into a retreat. Maul got shot in one of his prosthetic legs, and the two brothers carried each other to their ship.

To their misfortune though, one of the pirates had a rocket launcher aimed right at their ship and the ship went rocketing down to the floor. The pirates chased the crashing ship while Obi-Wan ran back to Kyle who was lying on the ground, lifeless. Obi-Wan tried to reach for him through the Force, but there was no response.

Obi-Wan took his hand and brought it up to him. Even the perfect Jedi role model ended up having a weakness. No matter how much you prepare for it you can never not feel sad when somebody close to you passes away. He was there beside him, on his knees holding back tears.

Then all of the sudden Kyle's body began twitching and his skin paling. His eyes shot open, his pupils not visible. A dark aura started forming beneath him pulling him down into the ground. Obi-Wan tried to pull him away but to no avail. He was being pulled into the darkness with such ease as if Kenobi wasn't doing anything. Only his hand was left and Obi-Wan kept trying, but his hand was forced away when the tips of Kyle's hand disappeared. He was thrown back onto his backside.

When he got up, he noticed that the puddle of darkness that formed around his Padawan was gone and he still couldn't sense him. Obi-Wan was left at the pirate stronghold in sadness and bewilderment.

* * *

 _First of all, I'm really sorry if Cindo's emotions towards Naomi feel rushed. At first, I didn't even know if I wanted Cindo to fall in love with anybody, so that's why I never specified that he felt weird in those other chapters, although I hope that with the way Naomi acted around him in certain cases I managed to do something right. And for those that were hoping more for the Cindo Ahsoka route I have something interesting planned that I might do in the future._

 _And if you're asking yourself why doesn't he know what he's feeling if it sounds so obvious. The man was in the wilderness for five years. He learned more about how to observe his surroundings and the emotions of other beings, so he could use them to gain an advantage or learn more about life. He doesn't really yet know how to idenfity those things when they're happening to him._

 _As for what happens to Kyle. I'll just say that he will have an important role in the near future._


	29. Chapter 28

Chapter 28: A New Purpose (20 BBY – 19 BBY)

A plain of pure darkness was where Kyle stood, his vision blurry. He could barely make out streams of darkness which ran even further down into the abyss below him. He then looked at his hands and winced in surprise. Some of the parts of his hands were just bone and tissue connecting parts where there was muscle and pale skin. Under him and around his feet lay a pile of ash.

"Welcome," a sinister, dark and barely audible voice said, coming from all directions. "Where am I?" Kyle yelled, desperately looking around. "The fall to the eternal abyss. My finest creation," the voice said. "I have created this place millennia ago to feed me. Every bit of dark force energy that resides within a being when it dies comes here, so I can feast upon it," the sinister voice said, letting out an evil laugh after. "What do you gain from this?" Kyle asked, searching for the source of the voice, but he couldn't see anything at all.

"I feed my eternal hunger," the voice explained. "Why am I here?" Kyle asked. He noticed that other parts of his body began slowly turning into ash, slowly making the pile of it underneath him bigger. "You will bring me back to life," the voice said.

"Sorry, but you don't really strike me as a person with good intentions," Kyle expressed. "Yes, but then again you aren't much better," the voice commented and Kyle's look shot up from the ground to the darkness around him. "What do you mean?" he asked with narrowed eyes. "I've been right there the entire time, observing you and the Jedi." "Wait. You're the cause of the increasing darkness," Kyle said.

"No, I am not. I am merely using that darkness to sense and see what is happening there." After a brief pause, the voice continued. "I know what you think. That the Jedi are too weak to win this war, that your code prevents you from doing what has to be done, and that another war no matter how far it is, is inevitable. I can offer you something else," the voice attempted to persuade him.

"I will never join the dark side," Kyle protested. "Boy, your view of the Force is limited. I was once a Sith, but now through observing the galaxy for thousands of years, my view's changed. I have figured out how to save the galaxy from the plague of war," the voice told him. "And how would you go about doing that?" Kyle asked him, intriguingly.

"With the destruction of every living being," the voice said. "I would never help such a cause," Kyle said, motioning his arm across the air as protest. "You don't have a choice." "Wha…" Immense pain suddenly struck him and he was forced onto his knees. A stream of orange lightning came out of the depths of the abyss and struck him, and he could sense somebody trying to force their way into his mind. "Your resistance is futile," the voice said, only increasing the power of the attacks.

With the last few screams of pain he could muster, he fell to the floor, being covered with the ash of his skin and muscles. After a long silence he began rising out of the ash, but it wasn't the Kyle everybody knew. He was standing there motionlessly, experiencing immense pain as the ash slowly began floating into the air and attaching itself back to him. There were cracks in his skin from which a gentle orange light was making its way through. His usual brown eyes were replaced with sinister dark red ones with a slightly orange glow. "I'm at your command, my master," he said, kneeling.

* * *

Two days have passed since Obi-Wan's return from the mission. He spoke to everyone he could, done as much research on the dark mist that pulled Kyle's body underground, but he didn't learn anything. Nobody in recorded history ever encountered such a weird event.

Then all of the sudden he felt immense pain in his head, before it almost immediately disappeared. He was in the Jedi temple library at the time. He noticed that nobody else seemed to have experienced the same thing, so he could only make one conclusion. Something was still going on with Kyle. But it couldn't be he got impaled, Kenobi sensed that his force signature was completely gone when he was next to his body. He blamed himself for what happened, maybe that was making him self-destructive and making him experience this pain?

He had thought he would be able to control his emotions when such a thing occurred, but it turned out to be much worse than he thought. He needed to make sure he wasn't going crazy. He stood up and practically ran out of the library.

He went to the spot in the room of a thousand fountains where even after all these years Kyle, Ahsoka, and Razy used to practice there. It was still the case now, but there was only two of them and there was a looming feeling of grief in the air.

Ahsoka and Razy stopped their sparring when they noticed Obi-Wan. "Master Kenobi," Razy greeted, giving a respectful bow to the Jedi Master. "Have you experienced immense pain in the past few minutes?" he asked. "Yes, Master, we did. Why do you ask?" Ahsoka said. "This kind of pain can only be felt under two circumstances. Either a lot of lives have been extinguished at once or somebody you're in some way attached to dies," he explained. "Does this mean Kyle's alive?" Razy asked immediately after.

"I-I don't know. But this is incredibly weird," he said, striking his usual thoughtful pose.

"Is something wrong?" Naomi asked. She was practicing the basic combat techniques with her purple lightsaber when she noticed and sensed that Cindo experienced some sort of pain. "No. It's just the Force. Can't you feel it?" he said, as he recovered from the second-long spike of pain. "No, I didn't sense anything except for your pain," she responded.

"Weird… You can continue," he said. She nodded and continued where she left off. When he first examined her fighting style it was messy and underdeveloped. It seemed as if the Sith trained them to just purely rely on their dark emotions to overpower Jedi. So, he began teaching her the same way Cin Drallig taught him. They were slowly going through every form of combat.

It wasn't only so she could see which one she liked best, it was to make sure she could use any other form somewhat reliably if her opponent began predicting her movements. They were going over Form II, the one with which she had the most problems. Her footwork was sloppy, and her swings took too long and were too wide. She almost managed to trip over herself in some cases.

"Stop," he said, and she knew immediately that she was doing something wrong. He turned off her lightsaber while letting out a sigh and turning towards him. He walked up to her. "You are too wild and impatient. Makashi is an elegant and focused form of combat. It requires patience, precision, and most-importantly complete focus, because if any of the moves are done wrong you expose yourself to being attacked or even tripping over yourself as you demonstrated," he explained. "Get into the opening stance again." She took a deep breath and ignited her lightsaber.

She took a step forward with her left leg while holding her saber at her right side. "Start going through the moves slowly. Watch where and when you step," Cindo reminded her, walking back and forth with his hands behind his back. "Remember your movement with Makashi should consist of going forwards and backwards not to the side," he said, remembering how erratic her movement could be. She began very slowly swinging her saber in an x shape across the air, while also carefully monitoring her footwork.

She did the thing Cindo recommended ever since they began combat training. You can try going fast in the beginning but if it doesn't work slow it down a bit and then a bit more every time you fail. It is better to learn slowly than to not properly learn at all.

She finished off with a Makashi salute, placing her saber in front of her face. "Good. Now faster," Cindo ordered and she went through the same cycle of moves again, but this time faster.

"That will be enough for today," Cindo said. She was practicing the same moves repeatedly for hours on end. Cindo deemed that it was an appropriate time to finish up for the day as the sun began setting down behind Coruscant's skyscrapers.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her as she clipped her lightsaber to her belt. "I'm fine. Why are you asking?" she said, looking at him with a raised brow. "I'm still not confident in my ability to teach, so I'm trying to find out if I'm overworking you or doing something wrong," he explained, with a bit of hidden shame. She walked up to him. "You're doing a fine job. You're the best teacher I could've asked for. You're always there to help if I don't know something, your advice and teachings are excellent, sometimes even eye opening. I wouldn't want anybody else to teach me" she said before pausing shortly, wondering if she should add something, but in the end, she didn't.

And here was the feeling again. He could feel heat building up in his face. They kept staring at each other for a few moments until Naomi looked away. "Same time tomorrow?" she asked. "Umm… Y-yes," he managed to say when his brain finally managed to process what she said. He couldn't move his eyes away from her until she finally disappeared into the doorway that led into the building.

* * *

"I have the files you wanted, my lord," the voice said over a comm. "Good. Transfer the data," Palpatine ordered. He was again sitting in his chair behind his desk. He was looking out into the sunset. A few short moments later the voice said, "Data transferred." "Well done. I will call you when you're services will be required again," Palpatine said. "As you wish, my lord," the voice said. The call then ended and Palpatine was left in the silence of his office.

After a few minutes of skimming over the files, his suspicions were finally revealed. "After all this time I finally found you.," he said to himself. "One of the chosen five my apprentice failed to retrieve," he said with a sinister tone, his lips turning upside-down. "You have managed to evade my plan for you all those years ago on Dantooine," he said, gritting his teeth.

He remembers sending his then apprentice Darth Maul to retrieve five force-sensitives he took interest in. The Jedi failed to locate them and, so left them to live normal lives. But every being has a higher purpose. Through time Palpatine found five of these children he sensed had an incredibly powerful connection to the Force.

His instructions were to not directly engage in the abduction in fear of garnering unwanted attention, so he was forced to seek bounty hunters or other such folk that could do the job. It succeeded in the cases of the first four, but then disaster struck. The Jedi managed to save the child from the bounty hunters. It was a momentous loss and Maul was punished accordingly for his failure.

Palpatine began calming down. His ultimate plan was still in motion and it was going as smoothly as it could, so there was no reason to worry.

* * *

 _Although it's short I think this chapter does a good job of setting up the future. Kyle's ressurection and fall, Cindo and Naomi's relationship (I still am not confident that I'm doing it correctly, opinions would be appreciated), and Palpatine's hunt for force-sensitives._

 _And just in case any of you haven't noticed yet this story gets rid of the rule of two, because I personally find it stupid. I liked the Old Republic era when there were tons of Sith and Jedi running around at some points. It made for interesting rivalries and a chance to introduce cooler characters. The rule of two limits that, so I got rid of it. Hopefully it isn't a problem._

 _As a final note some of the next chapters (I don't know if it will already be included in the last one) will take a bit of inspiration from another series. Actually this chapter did as well. Specifically a series of video games. It will not be a full-on crossover as it will only have mentions of things and I will do my best to twist them so they make sense Star Wars wise, but I do plan on bringing in a character or two directly from those games. If you're here for just pure Star Wars you don't have to worry. These characters won't play a major role. This will only be the case for a few chapters._


	30. Chapter 29

Chapter 29: Acceptance (19 BBY)

 _1 month later…_

 _An old deserted city made of stone. Cindo woke up on one of the rooftops of the old deserted and broken down houses. It was as if he was transported to another age. Everything seemed ancient. He reached out with the Force. He could only sense two beings, one close and the other one far, far away. But not far away in a horizontal way, it was more in a vertical. He could sense it deep below the ground, slumbering. The other one was much, much closer. Both of the beings were soaked with the dark side of the Force. He could sense that the one closer to him still had a flicker of light in it, but the amount of darkness surrounding it was too great. The one he felt far below was just purely dark and evil._

 _He jumped down from the roof to the stone pathway below. Immediately he was grabbed from behind by a weak hand. He turned around and immediately ignited his orange lightsaber, cutting his attacker in half. It let out a wild screech before it fell to the ground. His attacker was a man with completely dried out and leathery skin. Its eyes were so dark that it looked like there was nothing there. From the casual wear, Cindo identified that the person must've been one of the residents before whatever happened to him._

 _He reached out with the Force again and began moving towards the closest force signature. As he was not sensing anything else he let his guard down which proved to be a mistake. He turned the corner and was surprised at the sight of two men wearing iron armor and another normal civilian. The two armored men were too weak to properly carry their swords so they just dragged them across the floor._

 _Cindo quickly hid behind the corner and tried to sense them with the Force, but he got nothing. The people here appeared to not be alive yet they weren't dead as well. The three of them were letting out random sounds that included humming, groaning and sometimes even screaming as they wondered aimlessly around the area._

 _Seeing as he had to go through them to get to the actual force signature, he had no choice but to kill them. He again turned the corner, this time with his lightsaber in the double-bladed mode and began running at them. The three of them slowly turned and screeched at him. Cindo ran at the first man with armor and slashed him before he could react. The townsman attempted to lunge at him with his whole body only to be impaled before he got close. The last one managed to raise his sword and run towards him. Cindo moved to the side as the man aimlessly ran past him and dug his sword into the stone pathway. Cindo put his lightsaber through his back._

" _Quite the show, I have to say," a voice said all of the sudden. Cindo turned on his heels, his lightsaber still ignited. There was a man leaning on a wall of a building. Almost all of his attire seemed to be made out of leather. Only his shirt which was underneath his leather coat and his top hat weren't made out of leather. His face was hidden with a white mask. The mask resembled a face only that it had an unnaturally big smile on it. There were daggers strapped around his belt and a crossbow was leaning on the wall next to him. The person also didn't have a force signature but at least he seemed to be sane so Cindo lowered his weapon._

" _Who are you and what is this place?" Cindo asked, checking if there were anymore of these insane people prowling around. "They call me Marvelous Chester and you my friend are currently within the great city of Oolacile," he said stretching his hands out. "Say, you don't seem like the folk I usually meet. So, my returning question to you will be who are you and how did you end up here?" Chester asked. Cindo at this point didn't know if this was a vision or a dream, so he decided to get as much information as he could about this place._

" _I'm Cindo and as to how I ended up here I have no idea," he answered. Marvelous Chester managed a laugh. "Ah yes, I see that we are in a similar boat, only that I've been here much longer," he said. "I originally come from a dark city where hunting beasts and blood research and transfusion were a craze. Of course, until the plague of beasts broke out and the whole once great city became a hunting ground. Men either lost their mind or turned into beasts. Sadly, I couldn't partake in the hunt as I was somehow dragged into this land of knights and other oddities."_

" _What happened here?" Cindo asked. "This place? This place my friend is the home of the father of the abyss. Many knights and travelers come through here to challenge the father, but none succeeded. Most of them don't even get past Artorias," he said, laughing again. Cindo only managed a confused look. "Oh. Don't you know who I'm talking about? Well, let me explain. Artorias was one of the great knights who attempted to stop the spread of the abyss. He was the one that came closest to it, but the abyss eventually drained his light as it drained the light from most of the people in this land. Now there is only darkness left in him. You would do well to avoid him," Chester recommended._

 _This land truly was weird. From the primitive technology to this now abyss that can drain the light from people, Cindo had no idea what to make of it. "Where does this knight reside?" Cindo asked. Chester only pointed his finger. The are which he pointed towards had obvious signs of corruption. The walls had long black and dark-blue marks on it, clawing its way outwards and expanding._

 _Cindo moved down the road that was tainted by the abyss. The further he moved the more he felt the dark side of the Force pressing its will upon him. It took a great amount of energy and focus to keep him out. He finally reached what was a broken-down tower._

 _The knight that was waiting for him inside was only the shadow of his former glory. His silver armor adored with blue cloth in some parts had dents in it. His right arm was broken and flailing around randomly as he hectically moved from one part of the room to the next, carrying a greatsword in his other hand, which was resting on his shoulder._

 _The part of his helmet where his face would be was pure darkness. A constant stream of dark mist was also seeping from it. He began letting out incredibly loud shrieks and weirdly, howls. The dark mist and the physical black and dark-blue parts of the abyss that were on the ground and walls began all flowing into him. With a howl that forced Cindo to cover his ears, a large explosion of visible dark side energy exploded from the once great knight. His whole body was surrounded by a dark-blue aura and the flicker of light Cindo felt all that time ago left him. He slid across the floor and swung his greatsword at Cindo before he could even react. Then there was only darkness left._

* * *

Cindo's head shot up. He managed to come back to his senses after a very short shock. His feelings of fear were slowly being replaced with peace. But it wasn't him calming himself down it was somebody else. He could sense somebody sending those soothing feelings to him over the force. But his thoughts didn't leave him. What was that place? Was it a dream, a vision or something else?

He was in Naomi's apartment. He came by sooner than usual because he had nothing interesting to do. When he entered the apartment, he saw her meditating on the floor, with her pillow underneath her, so he decided to just sit down and wait for her to finish, but he dozed off.

"Whoa," she said, coming out of her meditative state. She jumped slightly when she finally noticed Cindo sitting on one of the chairs. "Hey," she greeted, waving her hand. "Hi," he said and so the awkwardness began for him once again. "I just had this weird thing happen to me," she said with a thoughtful expression. "Tell me what happened."

"I don't know exactly. I was meditating and then I just felt a surge of fear and distress all of the sudden. It wasn't coming from me. It was as if I was unintentionally sensing what somebody else was feeling," she explained. "Then I sent some calming feelings through the force and it worked," she added. Cindo winced slightly. "A Force bond," he said quietly in shock but not quietly enough so that she couldn't hear it.

"A Force bond? What are you talking about?" she asked, baffled. "It usually appears between master and apprentice from the time they spend together," he told her. "So, we're connected?" she asked. "Yes, in a way. Through time the bond can become stronger and many more things can be done with it than just feeling the other's emotions and sending them," he said. "Can we, like talk over it?"

"Yes, if it becomes strong enough," he said. "Cool," she said, with a flicker of happiness in her eyes. While she was happy Cindo was in quite the opposite situation. Having a force bond meant that concealing his feelings and thoughts would be much harder and damn near impossible if the bond got stronger. Over the past month of him training her his situation became worse and worse.

One of those nights he was meditating, and he finally came upon a conclusion. He liked her, more than he cared to admit. But his main fear was that she didn't like him as much as he liked her. He figured out that he feared being rejected. He would have to make a decision on what to do soon.

"So, what are we doing today?" she asked after coming out of the refresher. He didn't even notice her going there. "Well, today you're going to be helping me with something," he said, standing up.

"And what would that be?" she asked. He pulled the blaster Beckett gave him back on Onderon and handed it to her. "You'll be attempting to shoot me," he said with a smile. "This doesn't really make much sense," she said with a confused look. "Don't worry. I have it all planned out. Come on," he said, beckoning her to follow him.

"Are you completely sure about this?" she asked. "Yes," he said, standing up. He had spent the last few minutes preparing mentally for this. The force power he was about to try required extreme focus. Naomi sighed and aimed the blaster. "Shoot at my hand first," he said, pulling the hand as far away from his body as possible.

It turned out the blaster Beckett gave him was an RSKF-44 heavy blaster. It had a revolver-like design with a wooden grip. And it also shot two bolts at once.

Naomi pulled the trigger and the two red bolts flew through the air. They were a bit off, so Cindo had to move his arm to catch them. As soon as they touched Cindo's palm a very faint light engulfed it and the bolts disappeared. "Hey! I want to learn how to do that," she said as Cindo inspected his palm. He felt no pain or anything.

He walked over to her and patted her on the shoulder with a big smile on his face. "You'll learn in due time. Come on, there is much to learn."

* * *

The next day was the big one. Cindo spent hours and hours thinking about if he should tell her. And after hours of thinking, he decided that it was the time. He was still a bit nervous and scared, but he did his best to hide it. He arrived at the door and his hands were shaking slightly. He took three deep breaths before knocking.

The door opened almost instantaneously. To Cindo's surprise, he sensed that Naomi was nervous as well. "Hi… Ummm come in," she said, gesturing with her hand. Cindo went into the apartment and moments later they found themselves staring at each other. "I need to tell you something," they both said at the same time after a long pause. Naomi looked down at the ground while Cindo felt heat shoot up into his face. "You go first," he said. "No, you go," she countered immediately.

" _Here goes nothing,"_ he thought to himself. He took a very deep breath. "I-I think I love you," he said and she immediately looked at him straight in the eyes. "Weird… I was about to say the same thing," she said. The looked at each other awkwardly for the next few moments until Naomi pulled Cindo into a quick kiss.

Once she moved away Cindo could finally calm down. "This was harder to say than I expected," he said with a smile. "It was the same for me," she said, smiling back at him as they held hands.


	31. Chapter 30

Chapter 30: Trouble Brewing (19 BBY)

He felt happier. Even after a week of them revealing their love for each other he was still only getting happier. It was a good thing until people started noticing. Back before the event with Naomi transpired he used to be neutral when he was walking around without his mask on, but now an almost constant smile was drawn on his face. Viper squad and the clones he knew asked him about it and he just answered that he was having a good week or day. Most of them accepted the answer but some wanted more. They never got more. It was better if it stayed a secret for his and Naomi's sake.

He could've only imagined what terrible things could've happened if people found out that the Sith who was supposed to be in prison was actually being trained by someone most of the Jedi council still didn't fully trust.

Cindo was walking down the corridors of the barracks as fast as he could. He was in the middle of his run when he remembered that Obi-Wan was visiting today. Obi-Wan usually visited him once a week or so to check up on him and ask him how training's progressing, though his loss was also a thing they would talk about. He was starting to cope with it and use it in a way that improved his mindset and motivation, not destroy it, a sign of a true Jedi Master.

He saw that Kenobi was already waiting for him outside the door. To Cindo's surprise Ahsoka was also there. "Oh, there he is," HK said, turning around to face Cindo. "I've just been telling them how glorious your morning routine is." "I'm sure you did," Cindo said with a smirk, wiping off sweat from his face with a towel. He then opened the door. "Come in."

"Sit down wherever you'd like," he said, pulling his tank top that he used in his morning routines off. "What's up?" he asked them. He moved to the refresher to quickly wash himself. "We came to check up on you," Obi-Wan said. "Well I can say that everything's going as well as it can," Cindo assured them.

He came out of the fresher and moved to his bed. He kept his clothes on the top part of it. He felt Ahsoka's eyes following him as he moved through the room. "Well, I'm quite short on time and Ahsoka here wanted to talk to you, so I'll be waiting outside to talk about the thing," he said, standing up from the chair next to the door and stepping outside of the room, the door shutting behind him.

"I sense that you are uneasy about something," Cindo said, pointing out the obvious. From the way she sat with her right hand placed one her left shoulder while the left hand rested on her thigh. "Yes. It's about you," she said quietly. "What about me?" he said, putting on his shirt. "Something feels off about you. You seem way too happy and that's not usual you," she told him. "You worry too much. I'm perfectly fine," he said, and she shot up form her chair. "No, you're not! I can see and sense that something is different," she yelled in anger. "I can assure you whatever you think is different changed for the better it seems," he said.

"So, something is different." "Never said that," he replied with a shrug. "But you just…" he said lifting up her pointer finger. "Ahsoka," he interrupted, turning around and grabbing her shoulders. "Nothing's wrong. You're my best friend. If anything important happened or anything changed you would be one of the first if not the first to know. I trust you and you should trust me," he said, shaking her slightly. After a few moments she began nodding subtly. "I trust you," she said. "Thank you. Is this all you wanted to say?" he asked her. "Yes, that's all."

"Okay, good. Can I go talk to Obi-Wan now?" he said cautiously. "Yeah, go ahead," she said. Her head hung low as she left the room.

"And how did you manage to achieve that?" HK asked him as he observed Ahsoka walk down the hallway. "She seems devastated." "Women are weird beings my friend. One is harder to understand and read than the other."

"I'm guessing this talk is about Naomi?" Cindo asked when he met Obi-Wan outside the barracks. "Yes, it is." After a brief pause Obi-Wan continued. "Do you deem her ready for action?" Cindo thought about it for a moment. "Yes, she will be ready soon. Why?" he asked. "There's something the council wants you to undertake. We currently can't spare the resources for such an operation so you'll go alone or at least that's the plan. I want you to take HK and Naomi with you because something tells me you'll need the help," Obi-Wan explained. "When was I supposed to officially learn this?" Cindo asked. "In two days. Will that be enough?" Kenobi said.

"Two days? Sure. What kind of operation are we talking about?" he said, his mind switching to soldier mode. "It's more of a hunt. We've been getting weird reports. Here read them yourself," he said, pulling a datacard out of his robe. "Will do. I'm gonna go to Naomi now and talk about it with her. See you soon," he said and the two said their goodbyes, before Obi-Wan left for the Jedi temple.

* * *

"How do you think you're progressing?" Cindo asked Naomi. They were in her apartment, sitting on the bed. "I think I'm doing well," she said, looking up at him. Whenever they had moments like this he couldn't help but smile. It wasn't just the height difference now, it was also the fact that he could be close to the person he loved. "You should not doubt yourself. That only proves that you actually do not think you're ready. Be confident, don't think you can do it, know that you can do it," he told her.

"Oh, so like you were confident when you told me…" she began saying. "No. No. That was a different situation," he said in panic. It's never good to contradict your own teachings. "Don't worry. I was just joking big guy," she said, nudging him lightly in the shoulder. The way she talked sometimes discouraged him, but he knew she was just joking, so he was able to quickly get rid of the self-doubt. They even had these moments before they admitted that they liked each other, so it wasn't like he wasn't used to it.

"And by the way, I am ready," she said. "Good. Because in two day you'll be going on your first mission." She immediately jumped up to her feet. "Really? No, you have to be joking," she said in disbelief. "No joke. There is still a lot to learn, even I'm still learning the secrets of the Force, but I know you're ready."

"But what about the final test thing?" she asked. "Oh, that? Don't worry about that, we'll do it after we come back." She was shifting around the room, not knowing how to express the excitement she was feeling. She kissed Cindo on the cheek, before she moved to the door. "Where are you going?" he asked her. "Well, you said there's still a lot to learn, so come on," she said, running out of the room afterwards. Cindo shook his head and grinned in amusement going after her.

* * *

Cindo sat down in front of his terminal as soon as he came back to the barracks. Todays training sessions was long and exhausting, but he decided that he wanted to read what was on the datacard Obi-Wan gave him. He put it into the terminal and lines of text started to appear on the screen. There were reports of two separate incidents.

Cindo began reading the first one, which happened in a history museum on Corellia. They were unveiling the renovated museum when all of the sudden screaming and yelling could be heard from the crowd, followed by flashes of blue light. The crowd was being slaughtered for no apparent reason. Authorities thought it was a terrorist attack, so a few minutes after the slaughter CorSec forces arrived at the scene.

They moved inside the museum only to find more bodies. There were 236 civilian casualties along with 4 officers. Only two staff members of the museum survived the attack. They reported seeing a man dressed in a cowl walk into the museum after the attack on the outside area where the main event was held. Interestingly nothing was stolen and there were only a few specific cabinets and glass cases that were smashed.

The second incident happened on Onderon two days later in another museum. This time the amount of civilians killed was far less due to there not being any special event. Again there were no items stolen but a few specific items were moved out of their designated areas only to be found later. There were no survivors in the museum, so no one reported what the attacker looked like.

Whoever the attacker or group of attackers was, he was searching for something specific. But Cindo couldn't determine anything at this point, because he wasn't provided with a list of items that sparked interest in the attacker or attackers.

* * *

It was the last day before the mission. Cindo again entered Naomi's apartment for the last time, for a while at least. The walk there felt different. He couldn't shake this weird feeling. Something was amiss or wrong, but he just couldn't quite grasp what it was. He was looking around carefully, trying to see if anybody was looking at him, following him or something else. But there appeared to be no such thing happening, so he put it into the back of his mind.

He entered the apartment by himself after knocking a few times. Unsurprisingly she was asleep. Cindo knew that yesterday's training had to have completely drained her, so he let her rest.

"You know watching other people when they sleep is weird?" she said with closed eyes. "Didn't want to wake you up from your beauty sleep princess," Cindo said with a smile. She threw the blanket away revealing that she was only wearing underwear. "You know you could've at least started up the caf-maker," she said as she got up. "Don't worry I'll do it now," he growled as she moved to the refresher.

After a few minutes she came back into the main room and walked to the table where Cindo was sitting. "You know," she said as she began pouring herself a mug of caf. "It's my birthday today." Cindo winced slightly. "Why didn't you tell me I could've bought you something," he said, hoping that he didn't overhear her tell him that today was her birthday in the past. "This day is not about gifts for me. It's spending it with the people that mean a lot to me," she said. "And since I can see that you're worried. Letting me sleep longer was the best gift you could've given to me," she added. Cindo let out a breath of relieve in response.

Right then the door swung open and Cindo's muscles tensed again. He turned his head around carefully. To his shock Ahsoka was standing in the doorway with an expression that had a mix of anger, sadness and confusion in it. She kept looking at them for a few brief moments before she ran away. "Ahsoka, wait!" Cindo yelled but the sound of her shoes slamming against the floor continued. He got up and ran after her.

"Wait! Please!" he yelled as he caught up to her outside the housing unit. She turned around, her eyes filled with tears. "You lied to me!" she said angrily. "Look. I-I can explain," he said. "Explain what? How you're getting sweet with a Sith that's supposed to be in prison," she protested. "No, it's not that. You just caught us in an awkward moment," Cindo assured her. "Oh, an awkward moment? Is that why you were so happy," she said. "Just give me time to explain," he said, looking around and seeing that people were eyeing them weirdly. He tried calming down the tone of the conversation. "After I saved her from the Citadel I gave her the option of proving her innocence, and she did that. Me and Obi-Wan decided that she didn't deserve to be executed or sent to prison but the Jedi wouldn't have accepted her, so he told me to train her," he explained.

"Without the council's knowledge?" "Yes," he said reluctantly. "If they find out, me, Obi-Wan, and her are in trouble. Please don't tell anybody," he begged with his hands clasped together in front of his face. "Fine, but I never want to talk to you again," she said, wiping away the tears from her eyes. "Ahsoka I'm sor…" he said before being interrupted. "I won't forgive you. You told me to trust you and that nothing was going on. You lied about everything," she said. She turned around and disappeared into the crowded streets of Coruscant.

* * *

 _Well, we made it to chapter 30 (well actually chapter 31). Cindo really has been through quite a lot in the short eighteen years of his life. From being a promising youngling, to leaving everything behind to save his friends only to later slowly begin losing them and seeing that the reason for him becoming a Warden was much more than just saving them, and finally finding a person he loves._

 _I think many of you if not all of you noticed that the italic part in the last chapter was very heavily inspired by Dark Souls lore and characters (if you didn't you do now). I really wanted to explore that since I think it could work within the Star Wars universe especially after changing a few things up so it was more connected to the Force. There won't be much of that anymore in this story._

 _I also can't believe that they announced season 7 of Clone Wars. I wanted something like this to happen ever since the show was cancelled. I was telling myself that they were maybe going to do something like that at the anniversary panel, but I never fully believed that Disney would let God Emperor Filoni do it. I'm so stoked!_

 _Last but not least, I know these chapters have been short but I think this particular section of the story worked better in shorter chapters. The next few chapters should be a bit longer unless I run out of ideas about what to do._


	32. Chapter 31

Chapter 31: Unrest on Corellia (19 BBY)

"Do you know why you've been called here?" Windu said. Him, Cindo, HK and some other Jedi were currently situated in the briefing room within the Jedi temple. "Obi-Wan told me that you needed me for something," Cindo lied, knowing all too well what this was about. "We have been getting reports of a weird person or group of individuals that have taken in interest in smashing up museums," Windu said. "The keyword being smashing up. They have attacked two museums up until now. One on Corellia and one on Onderon. Both were history museums and, in both incidents, large amounts of civilians were killed."

"The strange thing is that the attackers haven't stolen a single thing neither have they smashed up more than a few cabinets or podiums containing historical items," Mundi added. "Do you have a list of the items that the attackers took interest in?" Cindo asked. "No. But the workers there should provide you with a list of items. A ship has already been prepared for you and your droid," Windu said. "Your objective is to stop this group's operations at all costs." "Understood."

"Did the plan work?" Cindo asked Obi-Wan after the meeting. They met right outside the briefing room and waited for everyone to leave before they started talking. "Yes. She should be getting loaded onto the ship now," Obi-Wan said. Cindo and Obi-Wan formulated a plan earlier in the morning on how to get Naomi onto the ship. Walking in wasn't an option since she was officially supposed to be in prison, so they had to come up with a way of getting her onto the ship. They decided that the easiest way would be to stuff her into a supply box. She was small enough, flexible enough and light enough so she wouldn't raise any suspicion when somebody picked her up.

They arrived at the hanger a few minutes later. The hangar was sprawling with activity. Workers were running around fixing up the various gunships and shuttles that were in the hangar and the clones were loading the ships with various supplies. Some were just waiting around for their Jedi Generals to take them to their star destroyers.

"This is goodbye for now," Cindo said, turning when he was halfway up the ramp. "Again. Thanks for all the help," he continued. Obi-Wan smiled. "No problem. May the Force be with you," he said, before turning around and walking off.

Cindo was given a fully operational Eta-class shuttle for this mission. The flight deck of the ship was small and spherical. It was almost entirely made out of transparisteel which in turn made it so the people in the flight deck had great visibility. A tall stabilizer was attached to the hull's dorsal side with two variable-pitch S-foils mounted port and starboard. The ship looked small from the outside, but it was surprisingly spacious in actuality. The ship had a red and white paint job.

Cindo closed the ramp when he entered and immediately went to the storage room where the supplies were. There were so many boxes that he had to reach out with the Force to sense which one she was in. He finally found it tucked away in the corner. He picked up the box and carried it out of the room. There he opened it and she rolled out of it, gasping for air.

"Took you long enough," she said, being interrupted by her own coughing. "I nearly died in there." Cindo smirked. "Don't be a dram queen," he said. "Come on. I'll introduce you to HK," he added after a short pause. He helped her to her feet and soon they were on the flight deck.

The flight deck itself as already mentioned was mostly made out of transparisteel. There were three seats; two in the front acting as the pilot and copilot seat and one in the back mostly being meant as a comms expert seat with various instruments dedicated to listening and tracking frequencies and communications all over the Republic networks.

"Get down," HK said, pulling out and readying his E-5 blaster. "No, HK calm down," Cindo said, swinging his arms in front of himself. "But there is someone behind you," he asked confusedly, lowering his weapon. "I know," he said, before carefully stepping to the side. "This is Naomi. My apprentice," he said, his hands pointing towards her. "Hello. It's nice to meet you," HK said happily, waving his left hand. Naomi waved back at him and smiled. "It's nice to meet you too HK," she said.

"Sorry about the little incident," Cindo said nervously. "It's not a problem. He looks cute," she said. "Finally, somebody that appreciates me," HK commented. Cindo shot an irritated look at him. "Hey! I appreciate you," he said. "Sometimes," HK retorted, before sitting back down in his copilot chair. " _Can't wait to see how this turns out,"_ Cindo thought to himself. " _It'll be fun,"_ he heard somebody say in his head all of the sudden. " _We're already at that stage?"_ Naomi looked at him and smiled. " _It would seem so."_

* * *

The ship exited hyperspace near Corellia. The planet itself was under the protection of the Republic but due to the Corellian government invoking Contemplanys Hermi, its borders were closed. No Republic representatives of any kind were allowed on the planet except under special circumstances and on special occasions.

The planets were still part of the Republic, but instead of clones they used their own defense force. Their fleet was stationed around the planet, observing, inspecting, and controlling traffic nonstop. Luckily for Cindo, Naomi, and HK, they were invited to the surface. They transmitted their clearance codes and were allowed to land.

Half an hour later they landed on a landing pad on top of a skyscraper deep within Coronet City. The city itself was mostly built on a giant manmade platform, but some of it was built over a jungle. Corellia's pride were its shipyards, which was pretty evident by the fact that workshops and giant lifts moving around parts of ships could be seen all around. From private contractors to large corporations that built ships for the military, Corellia had it all.

Two men approached the ship. Cindo and Naomi who were both covering their faces, Cindo with his mask and Naomi with her scarf pulled over the bottom half of her face, were followed by HK. They approached the two men who were dressed in brown colored light armor. It looked similar to clone armor only that there were more places where there wasn't any armor and the helmet design was different. It only had one straight line as a visor. One of them was equipped with a shield and a stun baton while the other had a DC-17 holstered on his belt.

"We're here to escort you," the man on the left said, not even greeting them. Both of them seemed very tense. They followed the two men as they led them to a turbolift. "Are you two private contractors?" Cindo asked them, as they were descending the building at high speed. "No, we're part of the CorSec anti-riot division," the one on the right answered. "And why is there a need for an anti-riot division picking us up? Why couldn't they just send normal CorSec officers?" Cindo asked. "The planet's currently in a financial crisis. It might seem like business is blooming from up there, but the lower levels are much worse. We're in a state of emergency. Protests and riots everywhere. Some citizens even took matters into their own hands and started to arm themselves," the one on the right explained.

"Is there something we can do to help?" Naomi asked. "Oh, yes there's a lot you could help with, but sadly the government doesn't want any outside intervention. It's a surprise that they even let you come here to investigate what happened at the museum," the one on the left said. "They keep telling everyone that all is under control when it's obviously not. We're losing numbers by the day, either because they get murdered or they run away from the fear of the same thing happening to them. Soon there won't be a force large enough to stop the radical groups," he added gravely. Cindo could sense their fear. The things they were saying were true.

"They would rather see us all die than to get help," the other one retorted. The turbolift stopped and the door opened. They were in a large reception lounge. It appeared that they landed on top of a hotel. Part of the lounge was swarming with CorSec officers and anti-riot units. "Why are there so many of you here?" Cindo asked as they were approaching the other members of CorSec. "The station got overrun by armed protesters so we had to retreat and make a temporary HQ here," the one on the right explained.

There were drag marks all across the floor that led to the holotable which was surrounded by people. It looked like there was a briefing going on. Various weapons ranging from stun batons to blaster rifles were scattered all around the tables and the ground. Boxes of recovered supplies were hastily stacked on top of each other just waiting to fall.

"Why are those guys wearing black armor?" Naomi asked as they passed the holotable. "They are our special forces." They exited the hotel through the main gate. A long and wide staircase littered with temporary cover and emplacements was what separated them from their speeder. CorSec officers who were occupying the cover had expressions full of fear and sadness. Some of them were even visibly shaking.

The streets were completely devoid of life. The road itself was cracked and in some areas completely gone. Tipped over speeder cars and bikes were littered on and around the roads, some of them even burning. _"What happened here?"_ Cindo heard Naomi say over their bond. " _This is awful,"_ was the only thing he managed to say in response.

A CorSec officer was anxiously waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs. He was standing outside of his speeder, holding a blaster in his right hand. "This is officer Thon. He will take you to the museum. Good luck," one of the men said before they began quickly walking up the stairs.

"Quickly, get in. We can't stay out here for long," Thon said, holstering his weapon and jumping into the speeder. The others followed and soon they were racing down the roads of Corellia. "I would keep your weapons ready if I were you. And keep your eyes peeled," he advised, turning the wheel of the speeder and nervously looking around.

They were speeding down the road when all of the sudden something hit the engine. It began smoking and the speeder began to shake wildly. "Jump!" Thon yelled, trying to keep the vehicle steady. The three of them jumped out of the speeder, rolling across the ground as the speeder hit a lamp post.

Cindo got to his feet and saw five men approaching. Some of their clothes were ragged and their skin was dirty. Each of them was holding a blaster pistol. Two of them ran at the crashed speeder while the other three carefully approached Cindo, Naomi, and HK, firing their blasters widly.

They hid behind a broken speeder on the side of the road. "Naomi go check on the officer. Me and HK will deal with these guys." Naomi nodded and a moment after she dashed away from cover, enhancing her speed with the Force. The blaster bolts aimed for her missed her as a result of the protesters' inexperience with weapons and Naomi's size and speed.

Cindo and HK took the moment to peek out from their cover. Cindo jumped over the speeder and activated his light-blue saber, deflecting away the blaster bolts while HK shot a single bolt, hitting one of them in the head. The other two scrambled for cover. One of them hid behind a lamp post and the other behind a large flower basin on the side of the road.

They blindly fired from around the cover, hoping to hit something. But the few bolts that managed to go into Cindo's direction were deflected. The protester behind the lamp post peeked his head out long enough for HK to shoot him. The other one kept on firing until his hand began contorting and twisting in painful ways, making him drop his blaster. He was then lifted up into the air and shot. Cindo let go of the now dead man and turned towards the crashed speeder.

Naomi managed to dispose of the two attackers and pull officer Thon out of the speeder. He was battered but he was alive. Cuts and bruises were lined all across his body and his left leg was broken. The shouting of more protesters could be heard coming down the street. "Leave me here," Thon said. "You're never gonna make it with me." Naomi shook her head. "Oh no, you're not dying for nothing," she said, crouching next to him. She looked up at Cindo and he knew what she wanted him to do. "HK, carry him," Cindo ordered, and the droid looked at him in exasperation. "Really?" HK asked. "Yes." Without uttering another word HK picked up Thon and slung him over his shoulder. "Which way do we need to go?" Cindo asked Thon. "There is a checkpoint that way. It should be one block away."

"Open the gates!" one of the guards at the checkpoint yelled. Cindo, HK, and Naomi were running down the street with a mob chasing after them. The chain gates slid open, revealing more guards with shields on the other side. They ran out and formed a line.

When the group got close a few of the men pulled back so the three of them could run through. The mob behind them slammed into the line of anti-riot guards and a large fight erupted. Most of the mob didn't even have weapons but they continued on attacking. The anti-riot guards were fighting back with their shields and batons while the rest of the officers took up positions on the walls of the checkpoint shooting down at the mob, their weapons set to stun.

Most of the mob, seeing that they had no chance of getting through decided to run away while the others fought until they were either apprehended or knocked unconscious.

"Get him to the medical tent immediately," an anti-riot guard with red stripes said. "What happened out there?" he asked as HK carried Thon away. "We got ambushed and the speeder crashed. Thon is lucky to have survived," Naomi explained. "You're the ones that are supposed to investigate the museum incident?" he asked and Cindo responded with a quick nod.

"Right now, we can't help you get there so you'll have to by yourself. There is a back entrance to the checkpoint in that direction. It leads to an alleyway. Follow it and you should arrive at the park where the museum is," the man said, turning his head to the direction of the door. "Got it," Naomi said before they took off.

The steel door closed behind them leaving them alone in the dark alleyway. There was almost no light due to the sky-high buildings on both sides of the alley. The only light was being emitted was that of burning barrels and campfires surrounded by beggars and other people that lost their homes due to the crisis. They all seemed to be ill or malnourished in some way. Some were coughing, the others growling in pain, others crying and some even throwing up. Their clothing was full of holes and torn. " _These poor people,"_ Naomi said over the bond. " _Sadly, we can't do anything for them,"_ Cindo commented.

As they were passing them some people had fear written all across their faces and their actions cemented that. They hid their family behind them protectively while others cowered closer to the walls and looked away from them.

A few minutes of walking through the plague-infested alleyway they arrived in a big open space. "Get to cover!" another anti-riot guard yelled from across the street. On both sides of the street were small durasteel plates that went all along the dirt. They resembled a large rectangular flower pot, only that trees were planted in it.

"There's a sniper in one of those windows!" the guard on the other side of the street yelled pointing down the street. Cindo peeked his head out and saw a building around one hundred meters away. "We need to take care of him soon. He's bleeding," he said putting a hand on the other guard's shoulder. The other guard was slouched beside him, holding his midsection with his hands. A small pool of blood was visible beneath him.

"What are we going to do?" HK asked. Cindo in the meantime was already thinking about a plan. "I don't know. Maybe we could…" She was interrupted by Cindo who lightly nudged her. "Naomi step out on the street," Cindo said. "Wait, what! Have you lost your mind?" she asked. "Trust me," he said with the kindest voice he could do. She sighed irritably before moving past Cindo. "Go on my mark. HK when she jumps out take a look and try to find out where the shots are coming from," Cindo ordered. "Got it," HK responded.

"And what am I supposed to do when I jump out?" Naomi asked. "Stand there I guess or stretch. I don't know," Cindo said sarcastically. "The things I do for you," she said under her breath. "Go!" Cindo said after a few silent and tense moments. Naomi ran out of cover while HK carefully peeked his head over the steel plate. The sniper took the bait and shot. Naomi pulled out her lightsaber in preparation to deflect it. But to her surprise the blaster bolt froze in the air a few centimeters in front of her. A few more bolts followed with the same result.

"You got his location?" Cindo asked, sitting in a meditative position with his hands on his lap. "Sixth floor. Second window on the left," HK reported before bringing his head back behind cover. Cindo pulled his right hand back and then proceeded to extend it forward as fast as he could. The bolts flew back twice as fast as before, hitting the window HK said the sniper was in.

"Is he down?" the guard on the other side of the street asked. "Yes!" Cindo yelled back. The guard immediately started lifting his colleague up to his feet. The wounded guard had to be supported by the other one to be able to walk. They slowly made their way across the street, the injured guard's face contorting in pain with every step he took. "Thank you," the healthy guard said with genuine amazement and appreciation shining through his mask. They then stumbled on into the alley towards the checkpoint.

"Let's go," Cindo said, tilting his head towards the park across the street for a moment. They began running over the wide, empty street and into the park.

The park was completely devoid of life as were most of the streets. As was the case for most of Coronet City the park was mostly a combination of pale oranges, browns and yellows. The only thing green were the leaves of the trees. Even the grass had a bit of a very light shade of yellow and brown in it. The color pellet made the city look even more industrial than it was.

After navigating the winding paths of the park, they arrived at the northern most side of the park. The structure was almost purely white, but as everything else, it had a soft hint of yellow in it. Leading to the entrance was a wide multi-flight set of stairs. They ran up the stairs to be met with blasters pointed at their direction.

"Hold your fire. It's them," one of the CorSec officers said. The other ones lowered their blasters and continued scouting the surrounding area while he approached Cindo's team. "I'm officer Paydon. You're here to investigate the attack?" he asked, trying to confirm his suspicions. "You're correct. Can we go inside?" Cindo said. "Yes, of course. Follow me," Paydon said. And with one last scan of the area he turned on his heels and began walking towards the entrance, Cindo's team following him.

The inside of the museum was far colder than the outside. "Why is it so cold in here?" Naomi asked, shivering slightly. "It's been like this since the attack. We may have an idea what's causing it but no science team that was here was able to determine what it actually is," the officer reported. Cindo could darkness coming from deeper within the museum.

They moved into the next room. It was wide and had a high ceiling. The room was filled with various speeder models that were made on Corellia. The next room was the same only that it was filled with scaled-down ships. The third one was interesting. The room was filled with various Green Jedi Enclave items. Paydon was telling them what happened but since Cindo knew he didn't pay much attention and only focused on the darkness he sensed.

Green Jedi existed back in the Old Republic era. They were formed after the destruction of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. They swore their allegiance to Corellia and no one else. They retained Jedi beliefs but they operated separately from the main branch of the Jedi, the Jedi High Council.

Everything from lightsabers without crystals, Padawan braids, their signature clothing and ancient books and inscriptions were displayed. But none of it was touched. " _Do you sense it too?"_ Cindo asked. _"Yes. The darkness. I can sense its source is close."_ And she was correct.

A shiver went down Cindo's spine when he entered the next room. He could also sense Naomi's discomfort over the bond. In the middle of the room was a black puddle. The further outwards it went the more purple it got. Cindo remembered this from his vision. It was a trace of the abyss.

The whole room was in fact filled with the dark side. The objects in that room were in some way in the past connected to the dark side. Talismans, some weird tribal items, and small crystals were in the room. "Why are you allowed to have these items here?" Cindo questioned. Items that were radiating the dark side of the Force should not be near a random museum. "I have no idea, but I can get you the records of the museum alongside the list of the items in this room," Paydon offered. "Get them for us, please," Cindo said and the officer nodded and left the room afterwards.

"What is that?" Naomi asked, looking at the darkness. "It's a trace of the abyss," Cindo said grimly. "What's the abyss?" she asked. "I'll explain everything once we're on the ship," he said. Paydon came back a few minutes later. "Here are all the files connected to this room alongside the list of items," he said, handing Cindo a datacard. "Thank you for your help."


	33. Chapter 32

Chapter 32: Crumbs of Information (19 BBY)

It's been three months since the beginning of the investigation. More and more reports of similar events had come in and they checked out every single one of them. Onderon, Shili, Kiros, Ord Mantell, Kuat, Balmorra, and Alderaan were only a few of the many places the reports came from. From museums, government buildings to collectors' houses, nothing was safe.

Gradually through checking the reports and getting eyewitness accounts they managed to figure out who they were chasing. It turned out to only be one person. But that person appeared to be some sort of Force-user. It certainly couldn't be a Jedi and it also couldn't be a Sith because if it was a Sith they wouldn't want to raise so much unwanted attention. No whoever this person was they didn't care. Their only mission was to find some item or artifact or something that had some connection to the dark side either in the present or the past.

That was the only normal thing Cindo could discern from every bit of info he got. The rest was bizarre. Eyewitnesses that survived reported a large drop in temperature and getting either a light or strong headache when the attacker was close. The ones who saw him stated that their features were hidden behind a cloak from which a very gentle orange glow was being emitted. Those who saw him moving reported ash falling off the man and floating around the air before disappearing a few seconds after. The attacker was also never seen leaving the building.

"This doesn't make any sense!" Cindo expressed in frustration. He was sitting in the pilot's seat reading through one of the reports again. "Well at least we know that whatever it is will be easy to spot," Naomi said, sitting in the chair behind him picking at her nails. Cindo turned his chair around so it faced her. "Might be hard to do in a galaxy of trillions of living beings and thousands of inhabited planets," Cindo said.

"Maybe we could put him on the Republic's wanted list or something," Naomi proposed. "No. The attacks might slow down or become more random if we do that," Cindo said, running his right hand down his face. "Well then let's go over everything we know once again. Maybe we missed something," she said.

"Wouldn't hurt," Cindo said under his breath. He then took a few moments to think over what he was going to say. "So, almost all of the attacks happened in the Core and Inner Rim. There were also a few in the Expansion Region. The number of casualties is around two thousand at this point, but nothing has been stolen. The attacker only seems to be interested in items and artifacts that have something to do with the dark side of the Force," Cindo recapped. Naomi's eyes suddenly locked on to his. "Wait. What if we aren't looking into the items thoroughly enough or at least what happened to them during the attack," she said, her energy shooting up. "What do you mean by that?" Cindo asked.

"Well they only express interest in the dark side items as you said. Some of the items were moved while others were untouched even though the cases in which they were, were broken," she explained. "I think I know what you're thinking…" Cindo said. "You think we can determine what he's looking for if we look at the items he wanted to grab but then put back," he added.

"Exactly. Smashing the cases means that they are connected to the dark side. If they take the items for a closer inspection it means that they must be close to something they're looking for," she said excitedly. Cindo turned back around and opened a container that was placed in between the pilot and copilot seat. There were stacks and stacks of datacards in the container. "Take these," he said, holding out six datacards. "I'll check the rest."

"The ship has been refueled and resupplied," HK said, entering the cockpit. They were stationed at the Valor space station. They went there after their investigation on Alderaan. "Sit down. We'll stay here for a while longer," Cindo said, tapping the copilot seat. "Do I look like a dog?" HK asked, slightly tilting his head to the right. "No, I just indicated where you could take a seat," Cindo answered confusedly.

* * *

"I found something I think," Naomi said thoughtfully. Cindo swung his chair around as fast as he could. "The items that were found to have traces of the dark side in them are from various times. Anywhere from fifty thousand to a couple decades ago," she said, pausing to take a look at her datapad. "The attacker seems to mostly be focused on items that are approximately three to six thousand years old," she continued. "Nice job. Let's narrow down the search to only these items. It should get rid of quite a big chunk of the list," Cindo said.

"Anything interesting?" Cindo said after another couple of hours passed. They were still in the Valor's docking bay searching for any additional clues. "Nope," Naomi said, exhausted. "There's nothing that links these items together except for the time of their creation and even that is a three-thousand-year long period."

"I think you two have done enough for today. You should get some rest," HK said, standing up from his chair. He moved to the door that led to the back part of the ship. "Where are you going?" Cindo asked. "Well somebody has to tell them that we'll be staying for another couple of hours," HK said before leaving the ship.

"I can sense that you're worried," Naomi said. They were laying on one of the beds in the crew quarters. "I know. This whole thing's getting to my head," Cindo said. He had been having a headache for the past few days. All the time spent reading and looking at holographic displays and datapads was the cause of it.

She wrapped her hands around him and pulled him closer. "Hey, don't worry. We'll figure something out," she said, looking into his blue eyes. "It doesn't take much for you to make my day brighter," he said, finally forming a smile after many days of feeling miserable. "Guess it's just the power of love huh?" she said returning the smile. She then put her head on his chest and they slowly drifted off into sleep.

* * *

The next morning Cindo woke up to an unpleasant feeling. HK was tapping his head with a finger to wake him up. To say it hurt wouldn't be overstating it. Cindo attempted to lift himself up, only to be knocked down again. He held his head in pain. After a moment he looked up and saw that HK was only a couple centimeters away from him, his head directly above his. "Sorry," he said quietly. Cindo looked to his side and saw that Naomi was still sleeping. "You're lucky she's here, otherwise there would be yelling and screeching unlike any you've heard before," Cindo said in frustration.

"Well let me make it up to you," HK said as he was walking towards the door. "Another report came in and you'll want to see this one," he added before leaving the room. Cindo sat up, his left hand still placed on his forehead. "What's happening?" Naomi asked, with barely open eyes. "Another attack. HK made it sound like it was important," Cindo answered while putting on his boots. "I'll be right there," she said, pulling herself up slightly and stretching her hands. "You don't have to. You can sleep for a while longer," Cindo offered. "No slacking on the job."

"So, what have you got for us HK?" Cindo asked as he was entering the flight deck, Naomi following closely behind. "Another attack but this time our friend actually took something," HK answered. Cindo's eyes shot fully open and he could feel slight excitement and surprise in Naomi. "What did they take?" Cindo said, sitting down in the pilot chair. "I believe you'll find it intriguing," HK said, holding out the datapad. Cindo took it and looked for the name of the stolen item. He was reading through the report in his head until he saw – "Dantooine enclave…" He couldn't believe it. The person they were looking for attacked a Jedi enclave and murdered almost every Jedi there.

Well, it was mostly just Jedi that didn't actually focus on their fighting techniques rather they focused on gaining knowledge of the Force and the past. But still, the person attacked the enclave and survived. Cindo understood that the person was attacking museums and collectors but a Jedi enclave?

He kept reading through the report silently until another thing grabbed his attention. "Naga Sadow's holocron…" he muttered under his breath. "Naga Sadow. Who's that?" Naomi asked. "Naga Sadow was one of the most powerful Sith alchemists to ever live," Cindo answered in amazement. His old history-loving self was coming out. "What about that holocron?" she said. "By itself it does nothing. But there is an old legend about it," he said, trying to remember it.

"What does the legend say?" Naomi asked, her intrigue growing. "Well, it is said that before his death Marka Ragnos, one of the most powerful Sith of all time requested that Naga delve into soul transposition to try and transfer his soul to some other body. Naga succeeded… to a certain extent. He figured out a way to transfer a soul, but it didn't work the way Marka wanted it to. His soul couldn't be transported to another body, but it could be transported to an item and kept within it," Cindo explained.

"You said the holocron itself does nothing. What does it require to work?" Naomi said. "I don't know," Cindo responded. "A key," HK said all of the sudden. "How do you know that?" Cindo asked, raising a brow at the droid. "My old master took it from a tomb. She was quite the collector. The holocron itself is at least four times bigger than a normal Jedi holocron and a thick layer of impenetrable metal surrounds its core. The key to opening the holocron is Marka Ragno's scepter. The scepter's dark side energy would force the holocron to open up. My master deemed the holocron too dangerous, so she gave the scepter to the other person who helped her get through the tomb for safekeeping. Torian Cadera, his name was if I remember correctly."

"Maybe his clan still has it?" Cindo said thoughtfully. "It is not out of the question," HK responded. "Pull up the files on clan Cadera."

* * *

 _I know, I know. Such a long wait for such a short chapter. I am really sorry about this but I needed a way of setting everything up for the big events in the future. As you can tell we're halfway through the year and we all know what will happen soon._

 _It would also be good to know your opinions about these sorts of "filler" chapters. Should I keep them separate or incorporate them into other chapters in a shorter more concise way?_


	34. Chapter 33

Chapter 33: Confrontation (19 BBY)

Looking over the files the team established that the likeliest place for where Clan Cadera could be located would be Concord Dawn. An old and ruined planet, it was devastated by hundreds of wars between different clans. All of that resulted in one third of its mass being blasted out and forming an asteroid field in and around its orbit.

The planet was home to twenty-five different clans which were at peace at that time. But a war between two of them could erupt any day. More and more clans would join the fighting and there would be yet another planetary civil war.

"I don't have a good feeling about this," Naomi said. Cindo turned his head to look at her. "What's wrong?" he asked. "These files state that clan Cadera has been extinct for at least a decade, yet there are reports of people being seen walking around the clan's abandoned camp," she said, reading from the datapad. "Weird," Cindo said as the ship emerged out of hyperspace.

They were greeted by the beautiful dark blue color of the planet. The angle from which they were approaching from made it seem like the sun was shining through the core of the planet. "Whoa… Didn't expect a war torn planet to look so beautiful," Naomi said with wide eyes.

They landed a kilometer away from clan Cadera's camp. "HK bring out the speeders we'll wait for you outside," Cindo said as he was walking down the ramp of the ship. "Roger." Cindo and Naomi stepped onto the planet's rocky and barren surface. "Not really as pleasant to look at from the surface than from space," Naomi commented. The sun was slowly setting behind a giant rock far in the distance. "That's where we're going," Cindo said, pointing at the rock.

HK brought out the two Undicur-class jumpspeeders they had on board and soon they were beginning to approach the rock. They stopped close to some rocks. Music and loud talking could be heard closeby. "Stay here. I'll check it out," Cindo told them, before pulling himself up a rock and dragging his way to its edge.

There was a large party going on, but it didn't look Mandalorian. Beings of all species imaginable were there. All of them were dressed in very exotic and expensive clothes. A stage was set up beneath the large rock which towered over the area. All of the houses in the camps had their access restricted by either Mandalorian guards or the doors were locked or boarded up.

Cindo safely made his way back and dropped down from the rock. "What's happening over there?" Naomi asked. "A party of some sort," Cindo answered, confused. "And not just a normal party. This seems like something only important people can attend," he added. "So, how are we going to get in?" HK said. "Well we can try the obvious route first."

"Invitations?" a Mandalorian guard with red and black armor said. "Umm – well we sort of dropped them on the way," Cindo said. Naomi looked at him with a raised brow. " _Is this the best excuse you could come up with?"_ she asked irritably over the bond. Cindo lightly shrugged, not trying to gain the attention of the guard from the sudden gesture.

"What he meant to say was our droid here had a bit of a malfunction and he destroyed the invitation," Naomi quickly said. "Can I get your names?" the guard asked. "Don't worry about that Xemu. They're with me," a voice coming from behind the guard said. A moment later Beckett appeared and slipped the guard a couple of credits. "Ah, yes. Enjoy the party," the guard said, moving to the side.

"What are you doing here?" Cindo hissed silently at him. "Attending this wonderful meeting," Beckett answered inclining his head to the guests that noticed him as a greeting. When they were close to one of the houses Cindo grabbed his hand and pulled him behind it. "What is this now? I thought we were friends," Beckett said, raising his hands in surrender. "I just want to talk," Cindo reassured him loosening his grip. "You could've just asked," Beckett protested dusting off his suit. "I needed somewhere more private to chat."

"What's happening here?" Cindo asked. "It's an auction. What does it look like," Beckett answered, a bit mockingly. "I'm guessing it's not one of those legal ones," Cindo commented. "No," Beckett protested, raising his finger. "I like to call it a closed circle auction." Cindo shook his head in slight amusement. "Why are you here?" he continued. "Me. You know business as usual. What about you?" he asked back. "I'm here for a specific item. And whatever this auction is, is making it way harder to find it," Cindo said. "Well you can get a list of items from one of the people in the crowd," Beckett recommended. "Good idea. Naomi get me a list of items that are being auctioned off," Cindo said. "Got it," she said with a nod, before disappearing into the crowd.

"Well would you look at that. You got yourself a girl," Beckett commented, with a smirk on his face. "She looks…" Beckett began saying. "Don't say anything you'll regret," Cindo interrupted. "Nice," Beckett finished. "Now, what are you here to steal?" Cindo asked. "Me, steal? Never," he said sarcastically. Cindo raised a brow. "Okay, okay. I came here for an ancient blaster. A collector piece. Only a few ever made," he conceded. "Good. Then you can help me out," Cindo said and Beckett's eyes shot open in surprise. "You want to steal something?"

"Look. Let's not go into the details. I just need to get to wherever they're storing the items and we're good," Cindo said. "Shouldn't be much of a problem. I have it all planned out. Just follow my lead and we'll get in, in no time."

"Found the list but the scepter's not on it," Naomi said disappointedly. "What? How isn't it on it?" Cindo asked in bewilderment. "These types of auctions don't usually sell the incredibly old and mystical stuff to just any random criminal," Beckett said knowingly. "Do you mean that the item is still here it's just no being sold?" Cindo said.

"Well it is being sold. But only to a select few," Beckett said. "You'll probably find your item in the same place I'll find my blaster only that it will probably be way more protected," Beckett warned. "We can handle it," Cindo assured him. "Good. Then follow me."

* * *

"Hello? Can you help me I appear to be lost," HK said, walking towards two guards that were guarding the entrance of the warehouse where the items were being stored. The entrance was a normal slide door. The door itself was sitting at the bottom of the giant rock they saw when they first landed.

"A droid. What do you say Darthunn? Shall we have some fun with this bucket of bolts?" the guard in brown and white armor said as he took a step forward. The other guard who was wearing blue and silver armor stopped him by placing his right hand in front of him. "Remember. We aren't supposed to let anything happen to anyone, even if it's a droid. It might be owned by one of the guests. Do you want to the bosses for its destruction?" he asked. "You folks from clan Fett really don't know how to have fun do you?" the other guard asked, lowering his weapon.

"How did you get over here?" the guard wearing silver-blue armor asked HK. "I lost my owner and somehow ended up here," HK answered. The guard inclined his head as a signal that they should move closer. "Okay, we'll get you back to your owner," the other guard said with a sigh of disappointment. The moment they were within HK's reach he grabbed them and slammed their heads together with such force that the helmets cracked. The guards dropped to the ground, unconscious.

"You could've done it with a bit less force," Cindo said, moving out of the cover of a nearby house. "Sorry, I must've miscalculated something," HK said with a shrug. Cindo took one body while HK took the other. They dragged them to the door where Beckett was slicing the panel next to the door. Naomi in the meantime kept watch. "Oh I'm sure you did buddy," Cindo commented with a roll of his eyes. The door slid open and they dragged the two unconscious guards inside.

"They really weren't expecting anybody to come in here," Naomi commented, seeing that there were no guards nearby. The room was dimly lit by lights that were hanging off the ceiling. "All of this should be the least expensive stuff. They'll sell this first," Beckett said looking around the room at the various boxes and items that were covered.

They went deeper into the warehouse. Along the way they had to avoid some guards here and there that were talking or patrolling, some were even drinking. They came across another door that was guarded by two guards. "Wasn't expecting this. Whatever's we're looking for must be behind that door," Beckett said peeking his head out from the corner. "Does anybody have a plan?" Cindo asked. "Well I can just go in and stab them," HK said. Cindo facepalmed. "No, you can't just go in and stab them. We don't want to kill anybody," Cindo reminded him. "We don't?" HK asked confusedly. Cindo sighed and shook his head before turning to the other two. "Anybody else?"

"Well, I can try something," Naomi said a bit shyly. "And what would that be?" Beckett asked. "I can try to umm… persuade one of them away so you can get the other guy out of the way," she said. "Are you crazy?" Cindo said quietly. "It might work. I wouldn't say no if a lady like her had a request. And these Mandalorian warriors are even more crazy about women than your average Hutt," Beckett said, providing his input. "I can't believe this is happening. Fine, go," Cindo conceded.

Naomi stumbled around the corner acting as if she was drunk. She supported herself on the nearby crates and shelves as she slowly made her way to the guards. "What the? How did you get in here?" the guard on the right asked. "How did two fine men like you end up in a lonely place like this?" she asked ignoring the question. She then got close and stumbled supporting herself on the guard. "Lady you need to leave," the guard said, carefully removing her arms. But she just moved to his side, forcing his arm around her and looking up at him. "Would you mind escorting me?" she asked teasingly, running her right hand across his helmet and winking at him.

"You know," Beckett began saying but he was cut off by Cindo. "Don't say a word," he said furiously.

The guard was nervously turned his head towards the other guard who just shrugged back at him. "Come on then," the guard said and they began moving. When they got past the corner Naomi shifted her weight so the guard had to move to the right. Cindo grabbed him after they went around the corner and began continuously slamming his head into the shelf. "Stop it," Naomi said, pulling Cindo's hands away from the guard. "Calm down."

The other guard heard the slamming noise so he began approaching them. After he was close enough HK jumped from behind the corner and slammed his fist into the guard's face, knocking him out cold. "Well done. Now let's hide them," Beckett said. They left the two guards on one of the shelfs and covered them with a tarp. "Should do the trick," he commented. "Come on. Let's see what they were hiding."

The room they enter was very much the same as the last one only that the items in this room weren't covered. "Jackpot," Beckett said excitedly, looking around the room. "How long do we have until the auction begins?" Cindo asked. "Anywhere from five to ten minutes. So I recommend that you find whatever you're looking for soon. I would really like to stay and help but we don't really have enough time for that. I'll see you three outside. Good luck," he said. He then proceeded to move further into the room to search for the blaster.

"There aren't any images of the scepter. How are we supposed to know what it looks like?" Naomi asked, whispering. "Well the blade has the power of storing dark side energy so we should be able to sense it," Cindo said. He then focused his senses on finding a source of dark energy. There were quite a lot of them to his surprise although most of them were very weak. But there was one that stood out. It wasn't just dark energy it was like many different weak sources of energy forced into one big source. "It's here but not in this room," Cindo said, opening his eyes. "I can sense it too. It's deeper within the warehouse."

* * *

After a few intense minutes of evading even more patrols they managed to find a small doorway that led into a long and dark hallway with a dim light coming from the other side.

"Do you have the credits?" A voice could be heard saying as they approached. "Yes, but show it to me first," the other voice demanded. Cindo peeked his head through the doorway. Standing there were three Mandalorians and to Cindo's surprise, a Sith. The only things Cindo could decipher were that she was a woman with long dark hair. " _Hide your force signature,"_ Cindo told Naomi.

The Mandalorian in the middle nodded to the one to his right. The Mandalorian warrior turned around and vanished deeper into the room. After a few moments he came back with a large heavy white metal case. " _It's in there. I can sense it,"_ Cindo said to Naomi over the bond. " _Me too."_

The warrior opened the case and Cindo could sense the darkness within the scepter clearly now. The woman attempted to take the weapon, but the warrior pulled the case away. "Credits first," the one in the middle reminded her. She brought up the case in her left hand and opened it. "This doesn't look like the amount we agreed on," he said, eyeing her warily.

"Oops, must've miscounted," she said, before throwing the briefcase full of credits into his face. She then pulled out her lightsaber and cut off the left guard's head before he could fire while force choking the one on the right. The warrior in the middle recovered but not fast enough. The second he brought up his blaster to fire his hand got cut off. The woman then impaled him. She then looked at the last warrior who was holding his neck trying to pull away the invisible hands. Clenching her fist harder the Mandalorian began wincing and attempting to let out screams but all he could let out were just quiet squeaks. His whole body went numb and his head flung downwards. Seeing that the man died the woman threw his body across the room and smiled in delight.

" _You ready?"_ Cindo asked Naomi. " _After you,"_ she responded. Just before Cindo was about to jump into the room he froze. He felt an immense drop in temperature and a headache began creeping into his head from the sudden surge of dark side energy. " _He's here,"_ Cindo said over the bond. All of the sudden clapping could be heard to which the woman reacted by violently turning and letting out a burst of force energy. She hit a stack of boxes that were as a result of the impact flung away.

A person wearing a cloak with a hood over their head was standing there, clapping. "Quite the performance," the masculine voice said, ash dripping from his hands with every clap. The woman in a fit of rage sent another burst of force energy his way. He merely pushed it away with his hand as if it was nothing. The woman took a step back in slight shock but she recovered quickly and put a more firm grip on her crimson saber.

She then launched herself straight at the man who in response pulled out and ignited his own blue lightsaber. He masterfully deflected her initial flurry of attacks before kicking her in the knee. She growled in pain but managed to recover, launching another flurry of attacks this time striking with even more ferocity. The man easily blocked all of her attacks with his Makashi style of dueling.

She lifted her saber high up, attempting to slash vertically at him but the man took the opportunity to quickly jab at her. He hit her straight in the heart and she dropped to the ground. "So disappointing," the man commented, shaking his head. He then looked at the scepter and began making his way towards it. _"We have to do something,"_ Naomi kept saying. Taking a deep breath Cindo entered the room, followed by Naomi and HK.

The man stopped in his tracks. "I had a feeling somebody was watching. Welcome old friend," the man said, a smile forming under his hood. "I don't know you," Cindo answered, pulling out his two lightsabers. The man let out a short laugh before pulling his hood down. Cindo's eyes widened.

"Kyle? No, you're supposed to be dead!" he said at the sight of his old friend. "I am dead," Kyle responded. "Then how are you here?" he asked. "I have been reanimated by my master. He has given me a chance. A chance to do something good for the galaxy. The chance to end all wars," Kyle said. "Why did you kill all those people?" Cindo asked, not letting his guard down. "They are fuel for my master. His hunger must be sated only then can the galaxy be saved."

"You're insane. What's killing innocent people going to achieve in the end?" Cindo asked, gripping his sabers tightly. "You don't understand, do you? All of the hate, the suffering, the sorrow. All of it is caused by one thing and one thing only – the Force," Kyle said. "The Force will always attempt to maintain balance. Even if the Jedi win this war and the light shines brightly over the darkness, the dark side will return, and the cycle will continue. There is no gray, there is only white and black, which cannot coexist because the darkness will always try to prevail over the light. The only way to save the galaxy is to destroy everything that is connected to the force," he added.

"But everything is connected to the Force," Cindo protested. Kyle smirked at him. "The galaxy will be reborn eventually. Think about it, extinguishing trillions of lives will enable the next trillions to live in peace once the galaxy is reborn. No more Force, no more inevitable wars and suffering," he said, the orange glow emitting from his skin becoming brighter.

"There are better ways of solving this," Cindo protested. "There is none!" Kyle yelled as his body began to be surrounded by a black aura. "Then you give me no choice," Cindo said reluctantly.

* * *

 _Just as a bit of an update I'll be gone from 5th-11th August so don't expect any updates from now until the 11th. :c_


	35. Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Darkness (19 BBY)

Kyle brought his saber up to his face in the standard Makashi salute. He then lowered the saber so that it was pointing at the ground. He launched himself at the three of them with lighting fast speed. The person he launched himself at was Cindo who managed to block his jab at the last second.

Kyle recovering from the block was the perfect opportunity for Naomi to strike, but she was immediately pushed out of the way by a blast of Force energy. The same happened to HK a moment after when he attempted to fire. "Sound the alarm!" a voice called out on the other side of the corridor from where they came. The Mandalorains were alerted and were now on their way.

"HK do not let them in. Use non-lethal force unless they force you to do otherwise," Cindo ordered as he blocked another jab and took a step back. As they were exchanging swings Naomi chimed in, attacking Kyle from behind. He managed to block her swing and seeing as he couldn't battle them if they were each on the opposite side, decided to jump over Naomi. He landed and immediately found himself blocking an onslaught of attacks from three sabers.

His Makashi stance did enable him to block and parry most of the swings, but he found himself being forced back further and further. When he finally hit a wall with the back of his right heel he unleashed as strong of a force blast as he could. The blast of Force energy was so powerful that you could see it. Naomi and Cindo were both flung back through the air alongside the various boxes and other things in the room, the latter hitting his head on impact.

His vision now distorted he was barely able to make out the figures in the room. Kyle seemed to be struggling on his knees, the powerful force blast draining him. Naomi was using a box close to her to support herself. Kyle got onto his feet and began, slowly and shakily moving towards Cindo. Naomi attempted to stop him but this time she was met with force lightning, forcing her to the ground. In the meantime, shots and cries could be heard coming from the corridor where HK was doing all he could to stop the Mandalorians.

"Goodbye old friend," Kyle said, ready to strike the final blow as he towered above Cindo. But all of the sudden he extinguished his blade and began grabbing his head and letting out cries of pain. After a few moments the pain appeared to ease off, but he didn't reignite his lightsaber. Instead he crouched down next to Cindo who was barely conscious. "I would kill you but he has other plans," he said, bringing up his left hand close to his face. His hand was engulfed in black flame with white outlines.

Kyle put the hand on Cindo's face. It felt as if the flame was pulling out the life of him. Soon the only thing he could see was darkness.

* * *

 _Cindo woke up to an unpleasant feeling. It was as if something was nibbling at his flesh. Thousands of little beings just eating him alive. He fully came to his sense only to realize that he was falling. All he could see was himself and the darkness that surrounded him._

 _Then all of the sudden he hit the ground, but to his surprise there was no pain. Nothingness and silence was all there was in the abyss. "Welcome," a dark and distorted voice greeted. "Manus…" Cindo said spitefully. The voice managed a laugh. "The one you speak of has been gone for millions of years," the voice said. "Then who are you?" Cindo asked. "That is none of your concern. I have brought you here to give you a chance to make things right."_

" _Oh, I already heard what you might have to offer. And I'm not interested," Cindo declared. "But you are. You have no choice just as your friend didn't have one," the voice said, a laugh following._

 _Sensing danger through the Force Cindo swung around and put his hands together in front of him, absorbing a short burst of orange lightning. "You dare to defy my will!" the voice challenged, sending another burst of lighting his way, this time way more powerful. Absorbing it this time took a lot more focus and concentration, but he managed to do it._

 _With screams and growls of annoyance and anger the voice began to fade. Cindo thought it was over. But then streams of darkness began pouring from all sides into the same area on the ground. The streams stopped after a few moments, leaving a moving manifestation of dark side energy._

 _Cindo approached it carefully, one of his hands stretched out in front of him. When he got close the manifestation exploded sending dark side energy into all directions. The force of the explosion was so powerful that Cindo was pushed to the ground._

 _He looked up at where the manifestation was only to see a humanoid figure made out of dark side energy. "I gave you your chance. Now you shall die!" the man said. The man sent wave after wave of telekinetic blasts at Cindo who managed to avoid, deflect or absorb all of them. He could sense that the man's anger and hate for him was growing bigger and bigger by the second. Seeing that his current tactic proved no results the man decided to split himself in half._

 _Now with twice the number of attacks Cindo found himself overwhelmed. Defense wouldn't suffice anymore. As the next wave of telekinetic blasts came towards him, he stopped them midair with the Force and turned them back on their casters. Both of them got hit and the energy which they were made out of collapsed to the ground. Cindo took a moment to catch his breath only to notice that the two now puddles of dark side energy began moving towards each other, rebuilding the man._

" _You are no ordinary Jedi," the man concluded. "I'm no Jedi at all," Cindo retorted and the anger in the man shot up. "You dare make fun of me? I will show you what true power is!" the man declared, bringing his hands together. He then sent out another stream of force lightning, this time appearing to be even stronger. Cindo, knowing that he had no chance of absorbing it, channeled all of his own anger and sent out his own stream of force lighting. The blue and the orange met in the middle of the two of them._

 _The ground began to shake lightly and all of the force energy they were sending out with the lightning was beginning to pile up where the two colors of lightning met. The white ball of energy in the middle was steadily growing as more and more force energy was poured into it._

 _Cindo then all the sudden stopped his stream of force lightning and instead focused on creating one last push. He used all of the energy left within him and with the help of both of his hands and the Force pushed the giant ball of Force energy at the man. "No! Noooooo!" was all he could hear, before a flash of white light blinded him._

* * *

He found himself back in the warehouse moments after. Blaster bolts were still flying from the corridor where HK was still holding his ground. Cindo then looked over his shoulder to see Kyle holding Naomi by the neck, ready to impale her with his blade. Just as he was about to do it the cracks in his skin where the orange light was coming from ignited for a moment. He dropped his saber and drew back his hand from Naomi's neck, screaming from the pain. Cindo couldn't help but feel sorry for his old friend, even though he knew that he was eternally corrupted by the abyss.

"You!" he screamed, turning his head towards Cindo. "You did this!" He struggled back to his feet. Naomi who had to catch her breath for a few moments attempted to stop him. She ran at him from the side and swung at him. He parried the attack and kicked her, sending her sliding across the floor. "I'll deal with you later."

"You shouldn't have done that," Cindo said, with newfound anger and determination within him. Although he was still a bit dizzy from the impact he managed to stand up and ignite his lightsabers.

Kyle opened up with a jab which Cindo easily blocked. Kyle followed up his initial attack with fast and precise slashes. "You will not prevent me from bringing him back!" Kyle exclaimed in rage. He took a step back and attempted to surprise Cindo with a quick force push. Cindo quickly extended his left hand and managed to project a barrier of Force energy just in time, so he didn't get pushed away.

Kyle backing up gave Cindo enough time to come up with a new strategy. He sparred with Kyle many times using this form and even though he was way younger then and his overall fighting style didn't change, so Kyle knew what he had to do to beat him. But Cindo had another fighting style which Kyle didn't know much about. He combined his two sabers into one, transforming it into a double-bladed lightsaber.

His fighting style with the double-bladed saber was millennia old, and only ever employed by one Force-user, his predecessor Myria. The style relied on strong swings and surprise force attacks in between the swings. The unique part about the style was that through time and patience the wielder could learn how to imbue the saber with force lightning and use it in new and creative ways. Cindo planned to employ all of those things.

Cindo took a step forward and swung wide with full power. The first front blade hit Kyle first. He managed to block it but the sheer power of the strike threw his arm backwards, leaving him exposed to the second blade, which he managed to avoid with a lot of trouble. He stumbled back a few steps, leaving Cindo the ability to go for a quick force attack or a quick strike. He decided to put his left hand off the saber and strike Kyle with a quick surge of lightning.

Still regaining his footing and recovering from the swing Kyle was unable to block the lightning as it struck his right shoulder. He growled in pain and annoyance. Cindo sent out another burst of lightning. Kyle managed to absorb it with his saber this time and moved in to attack. Cindo placed his other hand back on his saber, giving him more control and stability while blocking.

Every swing and jab Kyle threw in was matched by either the blue or the orange blade of his double-bladed lightsaber. He faked a few attack but even after those Cindo gave him no opening. Cindo could see Naomi slowly standing up. " _Naomi help HK clear a path,"_ he said over their bond. " _No, I'll help you. We can beat him,"_ she responded. " _We came here for the scepter. If he doesn't get it he can't do anything. We will stop him another time. Now get the scepter and clear a path,"_ he ordered, swinging at Kyle. " _Got it,"_ she said after a few seconds of thinking. She wanted to help Cindo, but she knew he could hold his own until they cleared a path.

She carefully maneuvered her way around the area where Cindo and Kyle were fighting attempting to not get spotted by the latter. She managed to grab the scepter and run to the door of the corridor where HK was stunning Mandalorians with his blaster. "How's it looking?" she asked HK. "Wonderful. I count twelve neutralized. Four are still up, located on the other side of the corridor," HK reported. "Well done. We need to get out of here quick. Follow my lead," she said, igniting her purple lightsaber. "Ready?" Cindo nodded and she jumped into the corridor, holding her saber in her right and the scepter in her left hand.

The four Mandalorians started shooting at her immediately. She began deflecting their shots and slowly moving forward, HK following close behind. The first stun bolt he fired was on target and the warrior fell to the ground. The next few he fired weren't as accurate, but he managed to hit two of them. The last remaining warrior decided to holster his blaster and instead pulled out a vibroblade. He ran at Naomi who used the Force to throw the man into the ceiling, rendering him unconscious. "Nice," HK commented. "Keep moving and secure the next room. I'll go get Cindo," Naomi ordered, quickly turning around and running back to the room where they came from.

"Cindo!" she yelled, peeking her head through the doorway. Kyle turned his head for long enough for Cindo to hit him in the head with the hilt of his lightsaber. Kyle stumbled backwards and put his free hand on his nose. Cindo pushed him further into the room with the Force, giving him more time to escape. He joined Naomi and ran down the corridor where HK was waiting. HK shut the door behind them.

"Come on," Cindo said, beckoning them to follow him. They ran through the now mostly empty warehouse, encountering few Mandalorians on the way. Those proved to be no challenged as they took them out one by one. They ran through the exit of the warehouse. There they were surprised by a dozen guards waiting for them, blasters raised. "You're not going anywhere," one of the guards said. A blaster bolt was fired and one of the Mandalorains fell to the ground.

Most of them turned around to see where the shot came from. Seeing the opportunity, Cindo and Naomi used the Force, to blast the man aside. A speeder flew around the corner of a nearby house. "Get in!" a familiar voice, sitting in the driver seat said. They jumped into the speeder as fast as they could. "Buckle up this might be a rough one," Beckett said, stepping on the gas paddle. They went straight through the crowd while shots were being fired at them from all directions. "Are you crazy?" Cindo asked. "It was a good idea. They stopped shooting at us didn't they," Beckett commented happily, looking at Cindo. "Keep your eyes forward. I don't want to die today," Cindo exclaimed, pointing his hand forwards. They made it out of the camp and sped off into the distance.

* * *

 _I knew I said there wouldn't be another chapter until at least the 11th but I just had a surge in motivation and decided to do another one. And this will be the last one until 11th or later._


	36. Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Reunified (19 BBY)

"You know I've been thinking," Beckett said casually as they sped over the rocky surface of Concord Dawn. "For relative unknowns we do seem to run into each other quite a lot and we always end up helping each other in some way."

Cindo managed a smile under his mask. "I know. It's weird." Beckett nodded quickly. "It sure is."

All things considered the whole operation went well. No Mandalorians, except for the one Beckett shot were killed and they managed to get the scepter away. But Cindo just couldn't push away Kyle from his mind. How did this happen? What's so special about him that the father of the abyss chose him to carry out this task? How does abyssal corruption work? Who even is the father? The questions just kept on running through his head, but he currently had no answers.

"What about the landspeeders we left behind?" Naomi asked. "They probably found them by now and I'm not risking everybidy going back into a camp of fully armed Mandalorians for two landspeeders," Cindo explained to her. "I wouldn't mind," HK remarked. "I know," Cindo retorted with an exasperated sigh.

The sun began rising just as they began approaching their ship. "Is that it?" Beckett asked. "Yes," Cindo answered simply. The speeder stopped at the back side of the ship.

"It seems like this is it for now," Beckett said, a hint of slight disappointment in his voice. "You gonna miss us?" Cindo asked, teasingly. "I've learned that in my line of work it's better to not trust anybody. But that doesn't mean I miss some of the people I did work with," he explained. Cindo felt slightly sorry for the man. He appeared to be of great character.

"Well until we meet again," Cindo said, offering his hand. Naomi and HK already exited the speeder and lowered the ramp of the ship. "And I'm sure we will. Good luck or may the Force be with you or whatever you believers say," Beckett said, with a smile taking his hand and shaking it. Cindo jumped out of the speeder and Beckett sped off where they came from, disappearing into the distance.

Cindo turned his head towards the ship and sighed. Even though they got the scepter it was far from over. Kyle would definitely attempt to take it back or would somehow try to find other means to achieve his goal. So their hunt would have to continue for probably months or so he thought.

The team gathered in the flight deck after they exited Concord Dawn's atmosphere. Cindo felt safer there than on the surface for obvious reasons. "Did we learn anything?" Naomi asked.

"I learned that there are actually two masters of the abyss," Cindo began saying. "The first one was Manus who apparently hasn't been present for millions of years. And then there's the new one which we don't know much about," he finished.

"Well whoever he his he must've lived at some point. What else do we know?" Naomi said.

"We know that Kyle's objective is to bring the father back to life and we know how he plans to do it. We also know what their ultimate goal is – the destruction of everything that is connected to the Force," Cindo said thoughtfully, his hand on his chin.

"Kyle mentioned something about killing people to satiate his master's hunger," Naomi added, striking a similar pose, only that she also had her legs crossed. "But how does killing innocent beings do that?"

Something clicked in Cindo's head and his face lit up with excitement. "Force energy!" he exclaimed loudly. "What?" Naomi asked. "Force energy. I saw it in the abyss. Streams of dark side energy seeping in from above. His master has a thirst for Force energy. And a lot of it," Cindo explained.

"At least it's a start," Naomi deadpanned. "Don't worry there's more," Cindo said eagerly.

"HK how many times the ritual with the holocron and scepter been attempted?" Cindo asked HK, turning his chair towards him. "Two confirmed times," HK responded.

"Can you explain how it works again based off those two examples," Cindo said, leaning forward slightly. "I don't need you to tell me any names. Just how the attempts went and what the outcome was."

"The first time it was used to transfer a soul from one dying body to a body without a soul. The transfer was successful, but the body died soon after. The second time it was used to transfer a soul from a dying body to an item, specifically a holocron. The transfer was successful, and the soul could communicate through the holocron, but only for short periods of time," HK reported.

"This doesn't make any sense. Kyle's master wants to eat all of the Force energy in the galaxy, but that's impossible to do from something like a holocron," Naomi said irritably, thinking that they reached a dead end, but Cindo had something else in mind.

"It does make sense. Soul transfers from a body back to the same body were successful and I know that for a fact. Sith alchemists and even Jedi tried it and it worked. The person's body was completely normal even after the soul reentered it. This means that the father's soul had to be ripped from his body at some point," Cindo said, a picture of the whole thing finally forming in his head.

"That's impossible. If his body is thousands of years old it should be decomposed beyond use," Naomi countered.

"Unless we're not looking for a body made of flesh. We're looking for a specific item which acted as the person's vessel. And I only know of one man who had used items instead of a body and had an unparallel thirst for Force energy. Darth Nihilus," Cindo analyzed, his expression empty, the excitement gone.

"Who is this Nihilus?" Naomi asked with genuine intrigue and slight excitement. But that excitement was mixed with worry and concern.

"One of the most powerful Sith in the galaxy," Cindo began. "He had the power to absorb all the energy of a planet by simply being close to it. His hunger grew and grew and the more force energy he absorbed the more corrupt he became. His physical body began deteriorating and soon there was nothing left. He had to bind his soul to his mask and robe to stay alive. Eventually he was killed by Meetra Surik or so history taught us, but it's obvious now that that isn't the case."

"So, the key to all of this is his mask?" Naomi said, slowly comprehending everything.

"Yes. If we find it and destroy it Nihilus cannot rebind himself to anything which would provide him with the ability to cause much harm," Cindo explained, a small smile on his face.

"That's all fine and dandy but there's only one problem. Where are we supposed to find this mask?" Naomi asked with a raised brow. "The galaxy is quite a big place after all."

"This ship should have access to a part of the Jedi library and luckily for us Obi-Wan gave us a password. HK plug in," Cindo inclined his head towards the socket. "When you're in search for anything related to Nihilus's mask."

It took fifteen minutes for HK to search through all the files and find references to the mask but for Cindo it felt like an eternity. He had a bad feeling. Well multiple bad feelings if you can call it that. All of the sudden the clones were on his mind again as if something forced him to think about them.

Back on Coruscant he had conducted as much research as he could about them but came up emptyhanded. And through time the more he got to know the clones the less he thought about it. They appeared as normal people to him and he respected them as such. The other bad feeling he had was just about the general future. Something was going to happen and it wasn't going to be good. He was going through every possible scenario in his head and trying to come up with solutions for each one.

"Cindo? Cindo," Naomi kept calling out, waving a hand in front of his face. He was brought out of his thoughts back to reality. Back to the ship orbiting Concord Dawn.

"Sorry. I was thinking about something. What have you found?" Cindo said, putting his hands on his thighs and turning the chair around to face HK. "As I've told Naomi, I found multiple records about the battle where Darth Nihilus was supposedly slain. The mask was supposedly destroyed in the explosion of Nihilus's flagship the Ravager. For their help in the attack the Mandalorians were granted their request to salvage the remains of Nihilus's fleet," HK reported.

"So, the Mandalorains took it?" Cindo presumed with a thoughtful expression.

"Either that or the mask is still in space or on Telos IV itself," HK remarked. "To Mandalore we go then," Cindo said, turning back towards the console and mechanisms in front of him.

They were close to Mandalore when Cindo sensed that Naomi was feeling uneasy about something. "Naomi what's bothering you?" he asked.

"I just checked up on what's happening in the sector. It appears that we're headed right into a warzone. A Republic task force lead by Generals Kenobi and Skywalker is laying siege to Mandalore," Naomi reported.

"The Separatists took Mandalore?" Cindo asked, bewildered.

"No. The capital city is under the full control of a crime syndicate, led by one Darth Maul," she deadpanned. Her usual enthusiasm was replaced with slight fear. She had obviously heard about the man before and so did Cindo. Kenobi told him the story of how Maul killed his master. Kenobi managed to slice the Sith in half and send him down a shaft. But somehow the Zabrak survived and returned with his brother of all people to exact his revenge. He partially managed to do so by killing Kyle, Kenobi's Padawan.

"As much as neither of us like it we still have to go there," Cindo said, straight-faced. He himself didn't want to go but he remember why he was here. He left everything behind to become stronger, to help the Republic and protect the ones he loved. It's what drove him, alongside Naomi of course.

"Will I finally get to kill meat bags?" HK asked. Cindo and Naomi both knew that the droid was serious, but they couldn't help but snicker. Anything to relieve the stress helped.

A few long and quiet hours later they exited hyperspace. They were met by a Venator-class Star Destroyer. The usual procedure followed. The ship hailed them and asked them the usual questions of why they were there. After that they transmitted their security codes and were cleared for landing outside the capital.

The planet Mandalore was a dustbowl. That was all it was. The cities had to be encased in spheres made out of durasteel to protect the inhabitants from the harsh heat and desert storms. As they flew they saw at least five of these domes, smoke rolling out of them. Scenes of battles already fought.

Cindo landed the ship in the landing zone on the outskirts of the camp. Large tents were setup all around the perimeter. The first thing Cindo noticed when he stepped out was that all of the troops wore armor with orange markings. _Perhaps a new battalion or something_ Cindo told himself before he spotted a familiar face. Out of the cloud of dust the shuttle left behind came Captain Rex.

"Commander Cindo," Rex said, stopping in front of him and saluting. "Captain," Cindo greeted, with an incline of his head, prompting the clone to ease his stance. He hadn't worked with the captain many times, but he did talk to him and get to know him.

"Who's the Twi'lek sir?" Rex asked. Naomi was eyeing him warily, half of her face masked by her black scarf.

"She's my business," Cindo answered a bit aggressively, but he immediately apologized after.

"Can you show me to the command tent please?" Cindo requested and the Captain gave a confirming nod. Naomi and HK followed closely behind as they navigated through the camp. Cindo thought Naomi might raise suspicion. Thankfully that didn't happen as the troops patrolling, carrying supplies or wounded, or talking didn't pay them much attention.

"Cindo!" a familiar voice from behind said. Cindo turned on his heels and saw Razy casually walking towards him with a smile on his face. His Padawan braid was flailing around in the wind. "What brings you here?"

"An urgent matter I'm afraid. I have to talk to Generals Kenobi and Skywalker," Cindo explained.

"They aren't here. They left for Coruscant when it got attacked," Razy stated. Cindo's eyes widened. "You didn't know?"

Cindo slowly turned his head toward Naomi. " _How don't we know that?"_ he asked her over the bond. She just shrugged in response.

"So, then who's the commanding officer?" Cindo asked, his head fixed on Razy who positioned himself at the entrance to the tent.

"I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. Come on the briefing is starting," Razy said, pulling away the tarp. Cindo stopped Naomi and HK as they began to walk towards the entrance. "You should stay here. I have a bad feeling about this," Cindo said and they both nodded in response and turned away.

He, Rex and Razy entered the dark tent. There was a holotable in the middle of the room surrounded by more clones, Mandalorains and… "Ahsoka," Cindo muttered under his breath when he saw her. She changed so much in the few months he hadn't seen her. Her whole attire was different and her Padawan braid was gone.

She only spared him a quick look before she started addressing the troops. Her posture was very authoritative. Her back was straight and her hands were behind her back while she was pacing back and forth going through the plan and pointing out things on the holographic map of the city.

* * *

"Ahsoka I'm really sorry about everything," Cindo began saying when he caught up with her outside the tent after the briefing.

"I'm past that," she said, her back turned towards him.

A few moments of awkward silence followed. "So… When did you get knighted?" Cindo asked, trying to break the silence. He did more than that. She winced slightly before bringing her right arm to her right elbow.

"I didn't," she answered as she turned towards him. Cindo couldn't remember the last time he saw her that sad.

"W-What do you mean you didn't? What happened while I was gone?" Cindo said, stuttering slightly.

"Hey Cindo, is there any place where I could get some water?" Naomi couldn't have appeared at a worse time. She looked up from the datapad in her right hand and froze in place. "If this is a bad time, I'll just move out of the way," she said awkwardly, pointing back where she came from.

"No, don't worry. I'm not mad about that anymore," she said, waving her hand dismissively and forcing a smile. "The water supply is down that row of tents," she said, pointing to her left. "Thanks," Naomi said with a fake smile.

"Come. I'll tell you the story in my tent," Ahsoka said, turning back around.

"You left the Jedi when they gave you a chance to come back?" Cindo was bewildered by the entire story. According to Ahsoka she was framed for a bombing in the Jedi temple. She was expelled from the order and taken to prison to await trial but the actual perpetrator helped her escape, making everybody else think it was actually her who did it. She eventually got capture but Anakin proved her innocence by finding the actual bomber, Barriss Offee.

"They didn't trust me. They threw me out without a second thought and then they made an excuse that it was actually a test when they were proven wrong. They're a bunch of self-righteous idiots," she explained.

She took a deep breath a few seconds later. "Why are you here? Still on your little investigation?"

"Yes. We found out who it is and how to stop them."

"And who is it?" Ahsoka asked with a raised brow.

Cindo's stomach sank. "It's an ancient Sith lord. Darth Nihilus. But that isn't the worst part. He brought Kyle back from the dead and now he's using him to resurrect himself," he explained.

"Kyle's alive?" her eyes shot open.

"Not exactly. He's not the Kyle we remember. He has been consumed by the dark side," Cindo said solemnly, looking at the ground.

"We can try bringing him back."

"He's too far gone. I have fought him but there is nothing else except for darkness left within him." Cindo made up a simple explanation. Going through the whole abyss thing would take too much time. Time, he didn't have.

"I need your help," he said after a short silence.

"With what?" Ahsoka asked with a raised brow.

"Whatever we're looking for is in that city, probably the palace. I need to get my team there."

"Impossible."

"Why?"

"The whole city's crawling with Maul's men and the palace is the center of his rule," Ahsoka explained.

"There has to be a way," Cindo said thoughtfully, stroking his chin.

"Well I can think of one that won't get you killed."

* * *

 _While I was away I made the mistake of reading this whole story. Why was it a mistake? The flow is terrible. It feels like the story is all over the place and poorly explained. Makes me feel really bad. I have no idea how people get through this whole thing. But what can you do. Leave the past behind and focus on the future I guess. I can't really say things'll get better but I'll try._


	37. Chapter 36

Chapter 36: Last Trip (19 BBY)

The plan proved to be impossible to carry out with the current manpower and equipment they had. The original idea was for them to sneak through the sewers right under the palace perimeter and then go on from there – simple. But from the reports of scout teams there were mines everywhere and their best slicers couldn't even get past a normal door leading to a supply room, leading them to believe that the encryptions on the locks had been changed. But as it tended to happen with Cindo the starts aligned.

There was one squad that could do the unthinkable and have been known to do so over the entirety of the Clone Wars. Viper squad.

"Oh great, another barren dustbowl," Fisk deadpanned, his gun rested on his shoulder. The squad's transport had just landed and unloaded them and some extra supplies. They were on Coruscant the day before helping in the defensive efforts. Ultimately the attack on Coruscant was repelled and they got ready for a short break until they were called to Mandalore.

"This isn't the vacation you dreamed of huh?" Glitch deadpanned. He himself was also not really enthusiastic.

"Can you two stop crying already. We have a job to do," Lek said irritably, shaking her head.

Hawker chuckled slightly. "This'll be fun." Although he wasn't a man of many words he did like to put out random comments from time to time, although they were usually pretty quiet and reserved only for himself to hear.

"Well there is a reason to cry!" Fisk protested with a sigh. He turned around and spotted Ahsoka standing in front of him, her arms crossed over her chest. Fisk immediately stood at attention. The rest of the squad positioned themselves to his left and right.

"Viper squad, at your disposal General," Razer said, saluting her.

"I wish you were at my disposal," she commented under her breath.

"What do you mean, General? We were assigned to you," Glitch said, confusedly.

"You're exactly the people I would need in the initial assault but you'll be under someone else's command," she explained, turning around and gesturing towards the tent behind her. "They're waiting for you inside." It took a whole day to bring Viper squad there which left them with little time before the main assault on the capital began.

* * *

"Well would you look at that," Fisk said, bug eyed. The rest of the team entered the tent behind him.

"Welcome to our humble abode," Cindo said, gesturing around the tent. The tent they got was equipped with two beds, some boxes with various assortments of supplies and a small holotable. Naomi was standing to his left, her face covered. It was for the better because if they figured out who she really was things might've become heated. Luckily for Cindo, the scarf did a good job of concealing her as she had no notable features except for being red, which was a rare color for a Twi'lek. And Cindo had to admit to himself that it made her look pretty cool and menacing as well.

HK in the meantime was standing behind Cindo, staring at the holographic projection of the sewer system and memorizing the route they would take.

"Didn't expect you to be here," Fisk said, taking off his helmet.

"Well that wasn't the plan at first but as well all know things tend to change in war time," Cindo commented.

"Fisk quiet down will you," Razer said, moving past the team. "It's good to be working alongside you again, Commander," he said, saluting him.

"Likewise Major. Let's get straight to business shall we," Cindo said, gesturing at the map.

* * *

"Is that all?" Razer asked after the briefing.

"Yeah, that should be all of it. Can you do it?" Cindo asked.

Surprisingly Hawker jumped in to answer. "Aye. We've been through worse lad. Ain't that right Razer?," he assured him. That reminded Cindo that it was the first time he saw him without his helmet, even after the two years he spent in somewhat close vicinity to him. The man had a chiseled face which sported a thick and medium length beard. His eyes were a mixture of brown and slightly orange. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with him and he acted confidently, so Cindo couldn't really figure out why he tried to hide his face as much as possible.

"Yeah, much worse," he said, trying to hide the sorrow from the past battles. After a short pause he gained his composure and went back to his normal self. "Fifteen minutes. Prepare your gear, stock up on anything you need. We'll meet outside this tent. Got it?" he said, eyeing his teammates. Some of them nodded and others vocally expressed their agreement. The whole team but Fisk left the tents only a few seconds after.

He approached Cindo as he was turning off the holo. "Hey, can we have a really fast chat?" he whispered.

"Sure. Why are you whispering?" Cindo asked in a normal tone. Fisk hushed at him and Cindo raised his hands in defeat and followed him out of the tent.

"What's wrong?" Cindo asked once they were outside. Fisk took a quick look into the tent, making sure nobody was listening in.

"Who's the girl? She taken?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Damn," Fisk said disappointedly. "Because she is damn fin…" He stopped talking once he saw Cindo's scowl. That and combined with Cindo's height it made him visibly uncomfortable. "I'm gonna stop talking now and go prepare," he said carefully.

"It's for the better," Cindo said, giving him a quick nod.

"That it is," he said with a forced smile. He tapped Cindo on the shoulder and awkwardly walked away. Cindo's eyes followed him until he turned the corner. He felt bad whenever he did that to people. He sighed and retreated back into the tent where Naomi awaited him with her hands on her waist.

"You know I heard all of that," she pointed out. Cindo didn't know how to respond. After a few moments she relaxed, walked up to him and hugged him. "You don't have to be so protective."

"I don't know why it happens," Cindo told her, wrapping his arms around her.

"Don't worry I won't leave you," she said, pulling back and looking him into his eyes. "Unless you do something stupid of course," she said with a grin.

Most of the squad showed up at the tent as expected. They were prepared, their weapons in their hands and their helmets placed firmly on their heads. Cindo always thought it was weird that they had black and green markings on their armor instead of blue, seeing as they were part of the 501st special forces detachment. The detachment consisted of two commando teams, one of which was wiped out and a recon section.

"Of course, those two are late," Razer exclaimed, rubbing where his forehead would be under his helmet.

"Ah'm no surprised," Hawker commented, shaking his head. Cindo could sense Glitch and Fisk approaching them. A few mere seconds after they sprinted around the corner, almost tripping over each other.

"Sorry we're late sir. We got lost," Fisk said, standing at attention in front of Razer, Glitch next to him.

"You got lost?" Lek asked, not believing the statement.

"We don't have time for this. The assault begins in one hour and we're already losing time. Let's move," Razer ordered and they took off towards the dark sphere in the distance.

It was early in the morning, so it was still a bit dark. As much of an advantage as the darkness was when approaching the sphere, it also gave host to a few new problems. The ground was in some places cracked and it was very easy to twist an ankle and there were also snakes hiding in some of the bigger cracks. Luckily they made it close to the sewer entrance without any problems.

* * *

"I think I'm not ready for the smell," Glitch commented under his breath. All of them were laying down on a low ridge that overlooked the entrance to the sewer. The door itself was small and it looked like any other part of the sphere only that it had a console on its right side.

"You see anything?" Razer asked Hawker who was checking out the area with his macrobinoculars. He shook his head as an answer. "Keep watch." He then pulled himself backwards and the rest followed. Once they could safely stand up he spoke again. "Me and Hawker are gonna stay here and watch your back. I need you three to go with them and clear a path."

"But sir shouldn't you go in?" Glitch asked confusedly.

"Well lieutenant I would, but I'm not important. You and Fisk are more needed than me and Hawker," he explained before turning his head to Lek. "Don't let them do anything stupid."

"I can keep them under control… hopefully," she muttered.

" _They seem like a good bunch of people,"_ Naomi said over the bond.

Razer relayed the rest of the orders he had and soon they were standing at the entrance. "Glitch work your magic," Cindo said and not a second later Glitch was already fiddling with the panel.

"This one seems relatively," he began saying before the door popped open, making him flinch slightly in surprise. "Simple."

"Good job little dude," Fisk said, punching him in the shoulder as usual. He then began moving into the doorway but he was pulled back by Lek.

"What?" he asked aggressively. Lek pointed at the bottom part of the doorway. Upon closer inspection he figured out that there was a small laser going from one side of the door to the other probably action as an early alarm or something worse. "Oh," Fisk said, slamming his hand on his forehead.

"Can you use your brain for once," Lek said with an exasperated sigh.

"As I told Glitch over here many times. The brain is the source of fear and nervousness, hence why I don't use it much," Fisk explained. His statement was met with chuckles from Cindo and Naomi.

"Well I'll take the lead then. It will lower the chance of us dying," Lek said, pushing him to the side and entering the sewer.

The rest of them followed. The three soldiers turned on their weapon mounted flashlights while HK turned on the one on his head. "Always wondered what that thing was for," Cindo commented more to himself than anybody. He and Naomi didn't bring any flashlights, so they walked in the middle of the group. But it wasn't like they needed them. They had their lightsabers and the Force to sense their surroundings.

The stench became stronger and stronger the deeper they went into the sewer system. The place where they entered from seemed to be the part of the sewer that was no longer in use.

The ceiling was low and the corridors were built in a half circle. They were wide enough that if they had to they could walk in rows of 2. The middle of the corridor was where the sewage flowed.

"This air filter isn't working," Fisk cried out. The deeper they got into the sewer the more he began to cough and even gag.

"Because it's made to filter out toxins and smoke not smell," Glitch explained irritably. Cindo sensed that Glitch himself had trouble dealing with the smell but he was holding out. To be honest everybody had at least a bit of trouble dealing with it, except for HK because he was a droid.

"HK how close are we?" Cindo asked the droid. HK was in front as he was the one who memorized the route.

"At this pace I calculate that we will arrive at our destination in fifteen minutes," HK said. "And one more thing. According to my built-in chronometer the assault is about to begin right now." He was right. As soon as he said that the ground began shaking lightly and faint sounds of explosions could be heard.

It took more than fifteen minutes. Countless mines had to be deactivated and numerous doors sliced, each bearing a more difficult encryption. At the end it took them twice the time to get to the final destination and with all of the distractions on the way Razer and Hawker caught up to them.

"Do we all remember our next objectives?" Cindo asked one last time before they would ascend the ladder.

"We draw them to the courtyard, blow a hole to help the main force move in," Glitch said.

"May the Force be with you," he said before they began climbing up the ladder. The ladder led directly to the back side of the palace. Cindo, Naomi, and HK were left alone as Viper squad began heading towards its objective.

"How do we know where to start looking?" Naomi asked. Cindo looked up to get a better look at the entry points. There were rows upon rows and columns upon columns of windows.

"Our best bet is to try and sense it," Cindo said, reaching out with the Force, looking for any signs of dark side energy. There were two sources very close together.

" _I can sense it but it's faint,"_ Naomi said.

" _It's deeper in the palace,"_ Cindo explained before turning his head toward HK. "Do you have anything that's quitter than a saber?"

"I have a small torch that can cut through glass," he said, retracting his left hand and replacing it with said torch.

"You really are equipped for everything," Naomi muttered quietly, looking around for any patrols.

"Well I am the best and most well equipped HK model of all time," HK exclaimed proudly.

Cindo rolled his eyes. "Just start cutting already."

* * *

 _After a couple hours of thinking it through i decided to separate the story into multiple volumes or whatever you call that. Each will focus on one period. This one focused on the prequel/Clone Wars era and the one that follows will logically focus on the OT/Galactic Civil war era and later on the sequel era._

 _After I finish the next chapter I will start writing Vol. 2 but at the same time I will also be writing the story of Viper Squad. All in all I have also made the decision to release chapters slower but I will try to make them longer and more entertaining and not this crap that you've been reading that looks like a 10-year-old wrote it._

 _One day I might even return to rewrite bits of this volume as something is obviously wrong here. Everything from the tenses, to the flow and the actual story is badly written, used and thought out._


	38. Chapter 37

Chapter 37: Betrayal (19 BBY)

" _This is interesting,"_ Naomi commented. The room which they entered was fully decorated with handcrafted furniture, paintings and rugs yet everything in the room had a thick layer of dust.

" _It is,"_ Cindo replied, walking around the room. The paintings had Mandalorian warriors on them mostly, showing their victories and showcasing their culture. The others were just paintings of landscapes from various planets.

"Can we get out of here please," HK said, shaking his head violently. "This dust is clogging up various things which in me which I would like to stay unnamed." Cindo and Naomi shared grins of amusement as the droid continued trembling and hitting its head.

Cindo opened the door. It led to a wide and tall hallway with luxurious chandeliers on the ceiling. The hallway was lined with small coffee tables with dead plants in pots. There were also many statuettes and busts lining the hallway. The air was very heavy and filled with dust just as everything else but there was also a new sensation. A stench worse than the one they witnessed in the sewers. Cindo gagged slightly as he caught the smell even through his helmet.

Naomi started coughing violently as she entered the hallway behind Cindo. "Smells like a pile of dead Bantha," she commented, pulling her black scarf over her nose.

"Sometimes I really appreciate being a droid," HK said to himself, walking in last.

"I think we should investigate it," Cindo proposed.

"We don't have time for that. The assault's already begun," Naomi protested.

"Look if it's a door in this hallway we'll investigate it otherwise we will let it slide okay?" Cindo said, his hand on her shoulder. She let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine."

This part of the palace seemed to have been abandoned quite a while ago. Around a month HK calculated.

They slowly and carefully made their way down the hallway while making sure that there were no traps. The further they moved the stronger the stench became. They were heading right for the source. Cindo felt a sharp pain in his head when they passed a door. It was different than any other in the hall. It was made of metal.

Cindo stopped when the pain hit him and looked towards the door. "I felt that too," Naomi said, turning towards the door.

"I don't want to destroy the suspense but do you two have one of those bond things?" HK asked intriguingly.

Cindo's eyes locked onto him. "How do you know about that?" he asked him with a raised brow.

"My old master used to have one," HK said.

"Yes, we have a force bond," Cindo answered with a sigh. He always forgot that the droid belonged to Myria, so it naturally knew a lot about the Force. And the bond he spoke about was probably between Myria and Keira. Unless it was something else but Cindo didn't have time to think about that now. When he finally dragged himself out of his thoughts he saw that Naomi was already cutting through the metal with her lightsaber. Cindo joined her and soon they cut an almost perfect circle into the door.

"I don't think I'm ready for this," she commented looking at the door. They pushed the cut-out piece of the door inwards. As soon as there was enough room for the air to leave the room the full extent of the stench hit their face.

Naomi was knocked down to her knees, her eyes began to water, and she started to cough and gag. Cindo experience much the same only that he leaned on the wall to support himself.

HK in the meantime just kept swinging his head around from Cindo to Naomi, looking confused. A few moments later he just shrugged it off and entered the darkness of the room.

It took a whole minute for Cindo and Naomi to recover but even then they did not recover fully. The stench was way too overwhelming for that to be possible.

"If I may ask… Why don't you just breathe through your mouth?" HK asked them, his head turned towards them.

"The heat of the air wouldn't really help, and I could probably taste the smell," Cindo explained, leaning on the frame of the hole in the door. "Is there a light switch somewhere?" he asked, feeling the wall.

"Don't worry about that," HK said. A second passed and his light flickered a few times before finally lighting up revealing… "Bodies," Cindo said, air leaving his body.

Bodies clad in light gray armor were piled up in the middle of the small room. The room was only equipped with 4 chairs, one of them broken. Flies and maggots lurching all around the pile and the stain of dried blood underneath. Naomi ran out of the room past Cindo and a few moments later she could be heard throwing up somewhere in the hallway. "Mandalorian Protector Guards," Cindo muttered quietly.

The few female bodies there were, were stripped of their armor and some of them stripped of everything else as well, their armor randomly dispersed around the room.

"What happened here?" Naomi asked, outside of the room.

"I don't know but I think I can figure it out," Cindo said, as he began scouring the ground with his eyes.

"How?"

"Back when I first arrived at Odessen I found a blaster, centuries old. When I picked it up and focused on it with the Force I got a vision of the person who used it," he explained. He found what he was looking for. On the ground was a blood-soaked baton. He picked it up and focused on it with the Force.

 _His vision was dark. All he could hear was screaming and cries of pain. It was not silent for a moment. Blunt objects hitting bodies could be heard alongside blaster bolts being fired and some sort of shock device sending pulses of electricity._

"They were tortured," Cindo said as he came out of the vision. "Maul's Mandalorians must've capture them and brought them here."

"Why would they do something like this?" Naomi asked.

"I-I don't know," Cindo said, dumbfounded by the situation. The people that did this must've had mental issues. Nobody in their right mind would do something like this.

"Can we move on?" Naomi asked. She was still nowhere to be seen.

"Yeah, let's get out of here," Cindo said, exiting the room with HK in tow. "We need to keep moving."

They kept on running down the hallway until they were stopped by a barricaded door. The barricade wasn't very sturdy as it appeared as if it was set up just to remind people not to go there. They cut through it with ease and entered a large open room. It was the central room and they were on the upper floor. They could see many more barricaded doors probably leading to other hallways. It seemed like the current occupants didn't really need all the space.

Cindo looked over the railing and spotted several Mandalorians wearing black and red armor. He reached out with the Force to see where the dark side energy he felt before resided. The conclusion made sense. It was in the direction of the throne room.

The problem was that the only stairs that led down were guarded, so they would have to find another way. Cindo had another quick look around the bottom part. A plan started formulating in his head.

* * *

" _You ready?"_ Cindo asked Naomi. They were on the opposite sides of the second-floor walkway. It didn't go all the way around the second floor, being cut off where the entrance to the throne room was. Two guards were right below that part.

Naomi nodded, and they dropped down on the guards, silently taking them out. Once they dragged the bodies to the small outcrop, Cindo signaled HK to jump and softened his landing with the Force. Their way to the throne room was now open.

The corridor that led to the throne room was narrower than the hallway where they found the bodies, but it was just as if not more decorated than it or at least it looked more alive. No dust and no dead plants. Then suddenly the ground shook violently, almost throwing Naomi off her feet. Ahsoka's forces were close. _"We need to hurry up before this place plummets into chaos."_

Cindo could sense multiple force signatures approaching them. "Hide," he told Naomi and HK, who both hid behind a wall where the hallway got even narrower. Cindo moved to the side and got down on his knees and making himself invisible with the Force. It was still a hard thing to do fast even after all the years of meditation. The group of six armed Mandalorians ran past them towards the entrance of the palace.

" _You need to teach me that,"_ Namoi said, her eyes shining with amazement.

" _You still have a ways to go before that. Let's keep moving,"_ he replied.

Luckily for them no more Mandalorians came their way and they arrived at the door to the throne room unscathed. The door was slightly open so Cindo put his ear close to it.

"My lord, Republic forces have reached the palace perimeter," a man said, his voice slightly muffled by his helmet. A second later the sound of metal hitting a wall violently echoed through the palace.

"Useless. Keep this safe. If anything happens to it I will personally disassemble your body, piece by piece," a clear and dark voice said.

Loud metallic footsteps began approaching the door. Cindo nervously looked around the corridor looking for a place to hide again. There was nothing. The person was closer and closer to the door. Cindo made a decision. He pushed the door with as much force as he could, knocking whoever was on the other side back.

Cindo entered the room moments later with both of his sabers in his hands, ignited. Then he saw him. Dart Maul.

"What is this?" he asked irritably as he got up. He ignited his lightsaber and observed them angrily. Naomi was on Cindo's right side while HK was on his left. The Mandalorians that were in the room raised their weapons and aimed them at the group.

" _You get them, I'll get Maul,"_ Cindo instructed Naomi. HK did not need such an instruction. He knew he was no match for a Sith so he would automatically start going for the Mandalorians. The two ran past Maul whose gaze was fixated on Cindo for some reason.

"Hmm… You seem familiar," Maul said. Cindo didn't understand how the Sith lord even knew he existed. They hadn't even seen each other before.

"Ah, I remember now," he said, his orange eyes lighting up with anger.

"What are you talking about? I've never seen you in my life," Cindo said. Maybe the Sith was trying to confuse him so he would drop his guard, but Cindo knew better.

"You wouldn't remember. You were too young back then and I wasn't personally there," Maul said. "But look at you now. A Jedi. Such a waste." He took a brief pause. "You could have been so much more," he said with a disappointed shake of his head. "Such potential yet you limit yourself intentionally by following some old reli…" The Sith barely managed to block the short stream of lightning Cindo sent his way.

"Oh, so you are a Sith," Maul said. He seemed to immediately notice Cindo's annoyance and anger at that word. He began laughing. "Or perhaps you are something else entirely but let me tell you something child – many have tried to play both sides. All of them failed."

Cindo had enough. He didn't have time for games. He attacked the Zabrak with a fast swing of his right saber. Maul met his blade easily but he was immediately attacked from the other side, forcing him to react quickly. He took a few steps back. "Aren't you a fast one."

He jumped forwards, putting his prosthetic legs to use. The speed and power with which Mauls' blade clashed with Cindo's was so powerful that it almost forced it out of Cindo's hand. Seeing an opportunity, Maul swung quickly again, this time being blocked by Cindo's other lightsaber. The two kept exchanging swings repeatedly with no clear victor while there were blaster bolts flying in all directions.

Maul used his anger and rage to empower and keep himself going. He kept on attacking relentlessly while Cindo precisely blocked his attacks, trying to conserve the least energy possible. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted a thermal detonator landing beside HK. The droid didn't notice it and kept on firing. Maul slashed horizontally at Cindo who blocked the attack and then immediately put in a quick counter swing, forcing Maul to backstep. That gave Cindo enough time to use the Force to push the thermal detonator away from HK.

Maul was unlike any Sith Cindo fought before. It seemed as if Dooku purposely trained most of the Sith under his command poorly. They purely relied on raw power and their emotions, but Maul was different. Sure, he relied on those things, but his technique was refined and precise which made it that much harder to create opportunities to attack.

It was time to switch up his strategy. He took a few steps back, but Maul was instantly on him again. He blew him away with the Force, but the Zabrak immediately recovered from the push. Cindo found himself blocking a flurry of attacks once again. Forcing Maul into a blade lock he had a few moments to scan his surroundings. He spotted a chandelier right on top of them. He extended his free hand and with the Force he managed to free the chandelier sending it down towards them. They both jumped into opposite directions just before the crystal chandelier hit the ground and shattered.

The second-long reprieve was enough time for him to put his two lightsabers into one. He readied himself for Maul's inevitable attack. It came a second later after Maul jumped over the chandelier, headed right for him. Maul seemed a bit surprised when he attacked at first, expecting two lightsabers instead of one but he soon adapted. They went back into a stalemate.

Cindo kept on blocking until Maul gave him a very short window of opportunity. He released the lightsaber with one hand and sent a surge of force lightning Maul's way. The former Sith lord absorbed it but he couldn't recover in time to block a telekinetic blast that hit him only moments after the lightning. He was sent through the air and hit the chandelier. He shook off the pain and with an angry growl propelled himself towards Cindo once again.

"I should've come for you personally," he remarked with breaks in between words as he struck at Cindo. Cindo paid him no attention. He didn't care about the past, the only thing that mattered was this moment. He baited Maul into another blade lock. With a fierce grin of craziness on his face he began pushing down Cindo's blade but unknown to him that was Cindo's plan all along. Both hands firmly placed on the hilt, Cindo sent out imbued his weapon with lightning. The lightning went from his saber over to Maul's and finally to Maul's body. As the Zabrak's body shook and his strength faded, Cindo got out of the blade lock by pushing Maul's lightsaber to the side. He then hit him in the face with the hilt as hard as he could.

Maul stumbled back with his hands on his nose. He removed his hands and blood began dripping from his nose. His gaze only darkened, and his teeth were clenched. Then all of the sudden Naomi and HK walked up behind him. He looked at each of them for a second before looking back at Cindo. He began running at him with full force. Cindo tightened his grip on his lightsaber, preparing for an attack, but to his surprise the attack never came. Instead the former Sith propelled himself over him with the Force.

"We will meet again," he said through his clenched teeth, before he ran out of the throne room.

The room was finally silent. "Did you find the mask?" Cindo asked Naomi after he made sure that Maul wasn't returning.

"I saw one of the Mandalorians by the throne handling it when we busted in. It should be around there," she said. They turned and started heading towards the throne. The room was lined with bodies of Mandalorians.

"You guys sure did well," Cindo commented as they were passing the bodies. Naomi's face had a sad expression on it. Seeing what was in that room will probably leave some marks and she would probably never look at another death lightly.

The temperature in the room suddenly began dropping. In front of them a black and purple vortex began forming. It was the abyss. Somehow it got here. The abyss energy slowly kept building up until there was a large manifestation of it. Cindo kicked over a table. The other two took the hint and hid behind it just as the manifestation exploded. There were marks of the abyss everywhere around the room.

Cindo peeked over. The thing standing there didn't even look like Kyle anymore. The cracks in his skin that used to be orange were now seeping dark energy. He had his hood over his head and his face was replaced with pure moving darkness. His deep and slow breaths echoed around the room.

Cindo stood up, jumped over the table, and ignited his lightsaber. Kyle was still standing there, his body slouched forward. He bent his knees and ignited his blue lightsaber, putting it at his side. Then all of the sudden he let out a howl so loud that Cindo felt slightly nauseous as a result. When he howled the darkness where his face is emitted more visible abyss energy.

Kyle began slowly walking towards Cindo, leaving abyss markings as he walked. Instead of swinging his lightsaber, he surprised the three of them by throwing abyss energy at them. Cindo and Naomi managed to evade it but HK wasn't so lucky. He got hit directly in the chest and as a result his chest area began to smoke and deteriorate. Seconds later he fell to the floor.

"No!" Cindo cried out as the droid hit the floor. His eyes met Kyle's face in an angry gaze. "You'll pay for that."

" _Find the mask,"_ he said to Naomi, who nodded. As she began running Kyle jumped towards her with speed that surpassed Maul. She barely managed to block his first attack. Cindo reacted fast, running at him and swinging from behind. Kyle's focus now shifted, Naomi had the chance to run and find the mask.

Cindo knew from the first few attack that he wouldn't be able to hold out for long. Kyle's constant swinging wasn't a problem it was what followed – even more dark abyss energy. With every swing of his hand, a lot of it flew towards Cindo and he was barely avoiding it.

Naomi found the mask under the body of the man who Maul entrusted it to. As soon as she touched it, Kyle's head swung around and he ran at her with full speed. " _Behind you,"_ Cindo called out over the bond, not a moment too soon. She managed to sidestep his attack and push him back with the Force.

"What do I do?" she called out as she was slowly retreating towards Cindo.

"Destroy it," Cindo said. She threw the mask on the ground and lifted her arms, ready to impale it with her lightsaber. But before she could she was blasted away by a powerful blast of force energy. Cindo found himself in the same situation a moment later, only that he hit the wall and was unable to recover fast. He could see Kyle approaching Naomi as she was dragging herself to her now deactivated saber. He was dragging his blade behind him, leaving burn marks around the floor.

As he got close he lifted his blade. Cindo finally got up but he would be too late. Kyle was already standing by her ready to swing. Cindo's heart stopped.

Just as he was about to swing a red blaster bolt passed through Kyle's shoulder, preventing him from swinging his saber. He turned his head around violently and spotted the target. It was HK. His chest was corroded. Kyle lifted him with the Force and pulled him towards himself. Cindo wanted to help. He was running towards Kyle the entire time. He couldn't rely on the Force since he was still dizzy and couldn't completely focus. The only thing that kept him going was adrenaline.

But he was too late. Before he could reach Kyle, the droid got impaled in the head and thrown against the floor. Cindo felt what he felt all those years ago when his parents were murdered in front of him. But he remembered his code. _"There is no meaning to a life without passion, yet I will not let passion destroy me,"_ he kept repeating to himself. He would mourn his good friend later, but he had to focus on Kyle first. He would use his death to empower himself.

He jumped at Kyle with a cry. Fueled by rage, his attacks were stronger. Even a being made of dark had trouble blocking his attacks, and found himself being force back towards a wall. " _Naomi, get the mask,"_ he told her over the bond. Fueled by adrenaline and his anger he kept the being of the abyss away for long enough for Naomi to put a lightsaber through it. The being began screaming and contorting in pain as it finally dropped to the floor. Moments later it began falling apart until there was only a pile of ash left.

Cindo ran over to Naomi. "You okay?" he asked her. She nodded and then looked at HK. Cindo followed her gaze with a sad expression. There laying on his back was HK, his head smoking and his chest area now black and burned through. For the first time in forever Cindo felt a tear run down his face. He lost a good companion and friend. The moment was ruined when Cindo's wrist comm began beeping. It was Razer.

"Yes, Razer?" Cindo said into the comm, his other arm around Naomi's shoulder as they mourned their friend.

"I have to make this brief, so listen. Do not go outside. Go where we came from and do not go close to the clones," Razer said, his words being separated by hisses of pain.

"Razer what's happening?" CIndo asked nervously. Something was happening outside.

"They betrayed us Cindo. You have to escape Mandalore," Razer said. Blaster bolts could be heard in the background. The transmission the suddenly cut off.

"Razer? Razer?" Cindo kept saying into the comm, but there was no response. "We need to go," he said to Naomi pulling her by her hand.

Curses could be heard being uttered where they first entered the sewers.

"Would you shut up!" a soft female voice said.

Cindo and Naomi turned the corner and immediately three blaster rifles were pointed at their direction. "It's us calm down," Cindo said, his arms raised just in case. Fisk, Glitch and Lek lowered their weapons.

"Thank the Force you made it," Glitch said.

"What's happening out there?" Cindo asked.

"The clones. They betrayed us and the Jedi," Fisk said. Cindo could sense his anger.

"How? What happened?"

"We were completing our objective," Lek began explaining. "And we managed to capture Maul with the help of the general but then all of the clones turned their guns against her except for Rex. We went in to try and protect her and talk some sense into them, but they just began shooting at us. We got separated from Ahsoka and Rex, so Razer and Hawker went after them and ordered us to come here and wait for you."

"And I'm guessing since they aren't with you I'm guessing they're…" Glitch said, unable to finish the sentence.

"They're probably dead," Cindo said, looking at the ground. He brought up his head to face the three of them. "I'm sorry."

"This can't be happening," Fisk said, hitting the wall with his fist.

"Calm down. We need to get out of here," Lek said.

"Almost all of the clones participated in the attack right?" Cindo asked and Lek nodded. "So, that means we can probably hijack a ship from camp."

"But there's a star destroyer in orbit," Fisk warned.

"Well if we do it without making noise we can transmit the codes and escape. So, what do you say?"

"There's nothing else we can do really. Let's go," Fisk said.

Luckily for them the camp was mostly empty and they managed to easily hijack a ship and take off. They transmitted the clearance codes and were given an all clear. They jumped to hyperspace not knowing what awaited them on the other side and how the galaxy has just changed forever.

The end.

* * *

 _That's it for the first volume. I would like to thank all of you who read, followed, reviewed this story. It really is a thing I poured a lot of time and effort into._

 _The next volume will be called The Forgotten Order and it will take place directly after this one. I haven't completely decided what I want to focus on yet but you'll get more of what I hope you liked here. And I will also simultaneously be writing a story about Viper squad called Heroes of The Republic: Viper Squad._

 _I will be hopefully releasing a chapter once a week/ 2 weeks depending on a lot of factors which I will not name._

 _Now to address a few things quickly._

 _Are Viper squad members special clones? No, they're all unique beings._

 _Why does Cindo never participate in a large battle? It's very simple really. The Jedi Order denies any use of the dark side at all and seeing as Cindo uses it they didn't trust him with commanding troops and attending war changing battles._

 _The Nihilus thing might've been a bit unexplained. His only intention was to feed himself. He knew that even when he got enough Force energy to satiate his hunger he would keep on going until there would be none left and without the Force there can't be life._


	39. A few final words

This isn't a new chapter because the story is completely done but to celebrate reaching 15k views I wanted to do something special. I'll explain what inspired me to write fanfiction and what the earlier itterations of this story looked like.

So, everything began back when I did my rewatch of Star Wars the Clone Wars, which is still to this day my favorite show. After watching it I felt like I needed more Star Wars in my life so the fact that Solo was right around the corner made me a very happy man. Went and watched it (it was a very fun and relaxed movie) I decided I still didn't have enough and decided to play some Star Wars games.

I started playing Star Wars The Old Republic a few months before I saw Solo but I stopped around mid-April. Having the itch to do more Star Wars related things made me buy a subscription alongside purchasing the KOTOR games. I played through the KOTOR games first and I have to say that alongside The Witcher 3 these are my two favorite single player games. After finishing the KOTOR games, I moved on to SWTOR. Played through all the stories and now my head was filled with Star Wars.

Since I don't have to study a lot, I had a lot of free time to think so I came up with a story that would take a lot of inspiration from the Old Republic era (my personal favorite era) and put it into the prequel era (second favorite era). Laying in bed, walking to school, sometimes even during class when I had nothing to do, I would spend all that time thinking up a story and when the product was ready I told it to my friends who to my surprise didn't start laughing or calling me a loser but actually enjoyed it and gave me some valid criticism. After a long time of pondering I then decided on sharing the story, so I began writing and there's where the first problems began appearing.

Although my English is on a good enough level to have conversations, my mental library of advanced English words isn't really expansive enough to allow for very detailed descriptions, so I decided to not complicate things and focused on the things that mattered – presenting the story.

Moving on to the changes:

The beginning of the initial draft went somewhat similarly to how the first few chapters of the story turned out only that Myria and Keira originally weren't supposed to be part of the story at all. I decided on adding them quite early due to how much more interesting they made the whole story in general.

Returning to the first draft, Cindo was supposed to go through normal Jedi training. He would excel at almost everything and would end up as Windu's Padawan (this is referenced in the story by Windu himself after Cindo runs away from the Jedi). Early on he would only use one blue saber, utilizing Form I.

Just before the Clone Wars started the Jedi would send an expeditionary force to a newly discovered planet with seemingly no prior history. Mace and Cindo would join the expeditionary force to attempt to make contact with any living beings on the planet if there were any. Upon arriving they would see the debris of a large space battle (the battle where the Gravestone takes out most of the Eternal flee). The debris were in such small pieces that they couldn't make out which type of ships were there but there was one that was almost fully intact only that it appeared to be cut in half and a distress signal would be coming from it.

The Jedi decide to land their ship inside the hangar and proceed to search the ship. The Dark Side leads Cindo to a room where he faces the apparition of Emperor Viciate. Windu attempts to help him but he is too late as a large explosion occurs separating him and Cindo. Thinking that his Padawan died Windu runs to the Jedi ships and calls for an evacuation. After making it out he is called to Odessen to help Kenobi.

Cindo then wakes up on Odessen and notices some ancient ruins laying in the distance. Upon closer inspection they prove to be the ruins of an ancient Force oriented order. He would find an old library containing many holocrons and books. The teachings intrigued him, so he decided to pursue becoming a Warden. The ancient holograms of a female human called Kara (later turned into Keira) guided him. Upon completing his trials, the Force leads him to the vault where he finds two white lightsaber crystals. He builds a couple of new lightsabers and begins training with them.

After a year or so the Separatists find the planet. Things play out similarly like they do in the finished product only that Naomi, her brother and Viper squad didn't exist. The Republic would send a task force to the planet to repel the Separatists. Cindo returns to the Republic and fights in the war (in the finished product I decided against this because as I said many times I don't like copying established work).

He would be assigned under Obi-Wan and he would fight alongside him throughout the remainder of the war. When the siege of Mandalore happened he and Ahsoka, who had at that point revealed that they love each other, would lead the charge against Maul. In the original ending Cindo was supposed to sacrifice himself so that Ahsoka and Rex could escape.

And this was the original concept for the story. I personally think that adding all the new characters made this story more interesting because otherwise I would consider this another OC/Ahsoka story and there are many of those already. I wanted to bring something new and from the amount of people that read the whole thing I can only assume that I somewhat succeeded in doing so.

I want to thank all of you again for reading and I can only hope that you stick with me throughout the continuations of this story (currently writing a prequel called Within Reach featuring the life stories of Myria and Keira).


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